Depletion of resources: Moscow has switched to mass sales of gold

The Central Bank of Russia has for the first time begun direct sales of gold from its reserves on the domestic market, opening access to the metal for banks, state-owned companies, and investment structures.

This was reported by the Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine.

The SZRU notes that this step is forced: gold is becoming a tool for the Kremlin to support the ruble, close the financial “holes” of corporations, and cover the budget deficit amid a rapid reduction in other resources.

Until 2025, the regulator did not sell gold on the domestic market – it only accumulated it, receiving the metal from the Ministry of Finance. Now the Central Bank of the Russian Federation is moving to a large-scale sale.

At the same time, the liquid reserves of the Russian National Welfare Fund are rapidly melting: from $113.5 billion in 2022 to $51.6 billion in 2025. The fund’s gold reserves have fallen by 57% — from 405.7 tons to 173.1 tons.

According to the forecast of the SZRU, in 2025 gold sales could reach $30 billion (about 230 tons), and in 2026 — at least $15 billion (115 tons).

Intelligence emphasizes: such monetization of reserves accelerates the depletion of reserves, which are already under pressure from sanctions and a sharp reduction in available currency instruments.

While selling gold now allows the Kremlin to temporarily bolster the budget and support the ruble, the strategy poses long-term risks — deepening reserve deficits, reliance on asset sales, and limiting opportunities for future interventions.

As a reminder, expanded sanctions restrictions targeting Chinese ports and refineries are significantly slowing the flow of Russian and Iranian oil to China , the world’s largest consumer of “black gold.” At the same time, the emergence of new schemes to circumvent these restrictions suggests that the current drop in supplies may be short-lived.

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