New Delhi/Mumbai (India): The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has rejected media reports claiming that it sold a part of its gold reserves to protect the country’s foreign exchange assets, saying the information is incorrect.
The clarification came after a Bloomberg report suggested that the central bank may have sold some gold holdings amid concerns related to foreign exchange reserves.
In a statement today, the RBI said that the physical stock of gold held by it is regularly disclosed in its Monthly Bulletin and the latest available data shows that the gold stock remains unchanged at 880.52 tonnes.
"The RBI emphasizes that these reports are not correct," the central bank said, advising members of the public to rely only on official information released by the RBI.
According to the latest RBI data on foreign exchange reserves, India's total reserves stood at $698.487 billion as of April 24, 2026. The reserves included foreign currency assets, gold, Special Drawing Rights (SDRs), and the reserve position with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
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The data showed that gold reserves were valued at around $120.236 billion, with the physical gold holding unchanged at 880.52 tonnes.
Foreign Currency Assets (FCA), the largest component of India’s forex reserves, stood at around $554.622 billion as of April 24, 2026.
The RBI also clarified that foreign currency assets are affected by changes in the value of major currencies such as the euro, pound sterling, yen and Australian dollar against the US dollar.
The central bank said gold holdings and other reserve components are disclosed transparently through official publications and reiterated that there has been no change in the physical stock of gold.
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On the other hand, PIB Fact check also rejected the claims made by Bloomberg.
In an X post, the PIB Fact Check wrote, "A news report published by Bloomberg states that RBI may have sold gold amounting to pproximately USD 12 billion. This claim is FAKE,"
"According to RBI, the share of gold in India's foreign exchange reserves rose from 13.92% at end-September 2025 to 16.70% on March 31, 2026, and further to 16.85% as of May 22, 2026," the X post added.
Ends.
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