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Overall, the Netherlands holds 612.4 tonnes of gold, a stockpile that was worth around €72.2 billion by the close of last year. With this latest transfer, London now holds about 32 percent of that total, while another 31 percent sits closer to home in Zeist, where the bank has been building up reserves after pulling gold out of Amsterdam. New York and Ottawa each still account for roughly 18.5 percent of the remaining supply.
How the Transfer Happened
Between March and August, the DNB physically moved more than 27 tonnes of gold from its North American vaults straight to its cash centre in Zeist, located in the Utrecht region. On top of that, another 59 tonnes that had been sitting in New York was sold off entirely, with an equal amount then bought back in London instead. To keep the overall geographic balance intact without adding extra gold to Dutch soil, the bank also sent 27 tonnes from Zeist over to London.
Explaining the reasoning, the DNB said that mounting geopolitical uncertainty has pushed it to sharpen its crisis preparedness, and part of that effort involves making sure Dutch-owned gold can be traded and converted into cash as fast as possible if things take a turn for the worse. According to the bank, London's gold market is widely seen as the most liquid in the world, which is exactly why it's now the preferred spot for reserves that may need to move quickly in an emergency.
A Shrinking Footprint in North America
Numbers from the end of February show just how much has changed. At that point, New York held the single largest chunk of the Netherlands' gold, at 31.3 percent. Since then, close to 78.39 tonnes have been pulled out of that location. Ottawa has seen a smaller but still notable drop, losing 7.35 tonnes from its holdings.
Valuing the relocated gold isn't a simple one-time figure either, since prices shift with the market. At the end of 2025, the batch that's been moved was worth an estimated €10.11 billion. By 3 p.m. on Wednesday, that same amount of gold was valued higher, at roughly €10.34 billion, reflecting how much gold prices have climbed since.
Earlier in the year, before any of this movement took place, New York alone held close to a third of the country's total reserves, Ottawa held just under 20 percent, London held about 18 percent, and Zeist accounted for the remaining 31 percent. The bank noted that spreading the gold more evenly across North America, the UK, and the Netherlands itself helps reduce risk overall rather than leaving too much concentrated in one place.
Where Things Stand Now
After all the recent transfers, the Netherlands still keeps about 113,300 kilograms of gold in both New York and Ottawa. Zeist now holds just over 188,600 kilograms, while London has become the single largest storage point, holding close to 196,600 kilograms.
The timing of this shift comes against a backdrop of rising global friction. The United States has recently been locked in tension with Iran, a situation that has pushed oil prices upward worldwide. Strains with Canada and Cuba have also been reported, alongside U.S. military activity in and around Caracas, Venezuela, adding to the broader sense of uncertainty driving central banks to rethink where they keep their most valuable reserves.
