Netherlands moved $10b of its gold from US

The Netherlands has moved billions of dollars of its gold reserves out of the United States and Canada, and transferred them to the United Kingdom amid global geopolitical tensions.

On Wednesday, the Dutch Central Bank (DNB) said it had moved the gold reserves to ensure it is “better prepared for severe crises”.

While DNB did not specify which crises it might need to be prepared for, the US is currently engaged in a bitter trade tariff war with Canada, while Washington is conducting a war in Iran and has led operations in Venezuela and around Cuba in recent months, reports Al Jazeera.

Furthermore, tensions between Europe and the US have risen since the start of the US war on Iran in February this year, as Trump has made his displeasure at the reluctance of European allies to join the war known.

In a statement, DNB President Olaf Sleijpen said: “With this relocation, we have improved the tradability of our gold reserves. We expect that we will never need to use them, but we do need to strengthen our resilience and preparedness.”

According to DNB, the decision to move gold – and to do so in two ways – is part of its risk diversification strategy.

It stated: “Combining the processes of buying and selling and physical transport has allowed DNB to spread the risks associated with such a complex physical gold relocation operation, while also ensuring efficiency and cost-consciousness.

“Moreover, experience of both approaches will be useful in the event that another relocation is required during a potential future crisis, and one of the two approaches proves impossible due to circumstances at the time. This also fits in with DNB’s efforts to increase its crisis preparedness.”