The Center on Wednesday denied reports that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) sold gold worth US$12 billion to boost the country’s foreign exchange reserves.
The clarification came after a Bloomberg report claimed that the central bank may have reduced part of its gold holdings to protect its foreign exchange reserves from the impact of the ongoing conflict in West Asia.
Validation of RBI’s gold ‘sale’ claims
In a press release issued on Wednesday, India’s central bank rejected media reports that claimed it had sold gold reserves worth about $12 billion to protect its foreign currency assets.
“The Reserve Bank of India confirms that these reports are incorrect,” he added.
The bank also said physical stock of gold was unchanged at 880.52 tonnes year-to-date. “Members of the public are therefore advised to rely on official information published by the Reserve Bank of India from time to time in such matters,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Press Information Bureau (PIB) also published a fact-check on the reports, calling them “fake”.
The share of gold in India’s foreign exchange reserves “rose to 16.70% on March 31, 2026,” it said.
“According to RBI, the share of gold in India’s foreign exchange reserves rose from 13.92% at the end of September 2025 to 16.70% on March 31, 2026, and then to 16.85% as of May 22, 2026,” the circular said.
He also said that the physical stock of gold is disclosed by the Reserve Bank of India in its monthly bulletin and remains unchanged as of now.
What did the report claim?
The Bloomberg report said that the Reserve Bank of India likely sold gold reserves worth about $12 billion during the two weeks ending May 22, while buying $7.5 billion in foreign currency assets.
The RBI’s actions in the foreign exchange market appear to have supported the rupee, helping it perform better than most Asian currencies since May 20, when it hit a record low, the report added. On Tuesday, the rupee fell 0.2% to 95.17 against the US dollar.
He also said that by the end of March, the Reserve Bank of India was holding 880.52 metric tons of gold, with 77% of that holdings stored within India.
Six months ago, 66% of gold reserves were located domestically. According to the Reserve Bank of India’s semi-annual foreign exchange report in April, most of its gold holdings abroad are held with the Bank of England and the Bank for International Settlements.
