Poland became the largest buyer of gold among the world's central banks in January-August 2026, increasing its reserves by approximately 98 tons, according to the data of the World Gold Council (WGC), published on October 6.
In August, the world's central banks continued to actively increase gold reserves, purchasing in net terms another 39 tons against 23 tons a month earlier. However, the rating of accumulated purchases since the beginning of the year is significantly different from the results of August alone.
According to the WGC, among the largest buyers of gold for January-August 2026:
Poland - about 98 tons
China - about 80 tons
Uzbekistan - about 50 tons
Kazakhstan - about 36 tons
Czech Republic - about 14 tons
The National Bank of Poland retained the first place thanks to the continuation of the large-scale program of accumulation of the precious metal. Only in August, the Polish central bank purchased about 7.8 tons more.
As a result, Poland's gold reserves approached 648 tons, while the strategic goal of the National Bank of the country is 700 tons.
China is in second place. In August, the People's Bank of China was the world's largest buyer, increasing reserves by 20.2 tons immediately.
From January to August, China bought about 80 tons of gold, and its official gold reserves reached about 2,387 tons. Gold accounts for about 9% of the country's international reserves.
At the same time, China continues to buy the precious metal for 22 months in a row, which makes it one of the most consistent buyers among the world's largest central banks.
In third place is Uzbekistan, which has increased its gold reserves by approximately 50 tons since the beginning of the year. In August, the country purchased another 7.8 tons. Uzbekistan's total gold reserves have reached approximately 439 tons, with the precious metal accounting for about 90% of the country's international reserves.
Kazakhstan ranks fourth with purchases of approximately 36 tons in eight months. In August, the National Bank of Kazakhstan added about 7.4 tons, bringing its gold reserves to about 377 tons. The share of gold in the country's international reserves is about 79%.
The Czech Republic rounds out the top five buyers. The Czech National Bank has bought 14 tonnes since the start of the year, including about 1.7 tonnes in August. The total volume of the country's gold reserves reached about 86 tons.
It is noteworthy that the Czech Republic has been increasing its gold reserves for 42 months in a row, conducting one of the most consistent reserve increase programs among European central banks.
At the same time, Turkey and Russia became the biggest sellers of gold from the beginning of 2026. Turkey reduced reserves by about 82 tons, although it resumed purchases in August and bought about 2.9 tons. Russia sold about 56 tons in January-August, including about 6.2 tons in August.
The World Gold Council notes that the retention of the same countries among active buyers indicates the long-term nature of the gold accumulation policy. Monthly changes in the volume of purchases largely reflect the implementation schedules of these programs, market conditions and the liquidity needs of individual states.
According to the WGC, for January-August 2026, central banks reported net purchases of approximately 170 tons of gold. At the same time, the officially registered changes in reserves do not necessarily reflect the entire demand of the public sector, since part of the operations of central banks becomes known with a delay or is not disclosed.
The World Gold Council regularly monitors changes in the official gold reserves of central banks based on data from the International Monetary Fund, national regulators and other official sources. The WGC considers central bank demand as one of the key drivers of the global gold market.
Primary source: World Gold Council - Central banks continue summer spree in August
