Markets
February 25, 2026
Gold surpasses the US dollar as the world’s top reserve asset by inflow, driven by the fastest pace of central bank gold buying in 50 years. China’s gold reserves have hit a record $369.6 billion, marking 15 straight months of accumulation by the People’s Bank of China. The de-dollarization trend is no longer speculative and is now showing up in reserve data globally, with gold being the most aggressively accumulated among all global reserve assets.
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Why Gold Surpassing the US Dollar Signals a Global Reserve Shift
This doesn’t mean the markets have replaced the dollar yet. IMF data shows that central banks still hold roughly 58 to 60% of global foreign exchange reserves in US dollars, which is far more than any other currency. What has changed is the direction of accumulation. Central bank gold buying has hit levels not seen in half a century, with nations actively reducing dollar exposure and shifting into gold as a core part of their global reserve assets strategy.
China’s Record $369.6B and the De-Dollarization Trend
China’s gold reserves reaching $369.6 billion is the clearest sign of this structural shift. The People’s Bank of China has been buying gold for 15 consecutive months. At the time of writing, those holdings represent an all-time high. China’s accumulation is part of a broader strategy to reduce reliance on the US dollar, and other central banks across emerging markets are following a similar path.
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Central banks accelerated de‑dollarization after the U.S. froze Russia’s dollar reserves in 2022. This has pushed nations to also diversify into gold as a domestically controlled asset. Gold doesn’t surpass the US dollar in total reserves hel. Now, it does lead in where new reserve allocations are flowing. This shift marks a major turning point for global reserve assets going forward.
