The Dutch central bank has relocated more than 78 metric tons of gold out of New York, citing ‘increasing geopolitical unrest’ as the driving factor behind the move. The shift makes the Netherlands the second European country this year to reduce or eliminate its gold holdings stored at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) reallocated approximately 86 total metric tons of gold previously held across the US and Canada, largely moving the reserves toward London, the New York Post reported, citing the Financial Times. DNB governor Olaf Sleijpen said the relocation was designed to strengthen crisis readiness and improve the tradeability of the country’s gold reserves.
‘With this relocation, we have improved the tradeability of our gold reserves,’ Sleijpen said. The bank did not blame the Trump administration or suggest Washington planned to seize foreign reserves.
Earlier this year, France eliminated its remaining New York gold holdings entirely, selling 129 metric tons that had been stored in the United States and repurchasing equivalent gold in Europe. The Banque de France explicitly denied a political motivation for the move at the time.
The Netherlands holds approximately 612 metric tons of gold in total. The latest reshuffling reduced its New York stockpile by just over 78 metric tons and its Ottawa holdings by roughly 7 metric tons. Only about 27 metric tons were physically transported to Europe; DNB sold much of its remaining North American holdings and purchased replacement gold in London, the world’s largest physical-bullion trading hub.
The development comes against a politically charged backdrop in Europe. Several German lawmakers have publicly questioned whether keeping their country’s massive gold hoard in New York remains prudent under the Trump administration. Markus Ferber, a German member of the European Parliament, warned last year that Trump’s unpredictability created risk around holding foreign reserves in the US.
‘Trump is erratic and one cannot rule out that someday he will come up with creative ideas how to treat foreign gold reserves,’ Ferber told Reuters in May 2025.
For New York’s role as a global financial center, the gold repatriation trend represents a potential long-term concern. The Federal Reserve Bank of New York has historically served as one of the world’s primary custodians of foreign gold reserves, a role that has reinforced the city’s position at the center of international finance.
