Russia’s gold reserves have decreased to a minimum: what does this mean?

Russia’s gold reserves have fallen to their lowest level since March 2022.

This was reported by the Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine.

As of early March 2026, stocks had decreased by approximately 15 tons to 2,311 tons.

The Central Bank of the Russian Federation began selling gold back in November 2025, although it had previously relied solely on accumulation. Since then, sales have continued and gradually increased.

As noted in the intelligence, the scheme looks like this: the regulator exchanges gold for yuan, and commercial banks sell the metal on foreign markets, receiving currency to maintain liquidity.

Russia’s total international reserves are also decreasing – in February they fell from $833.6 to $809.3 billion. At the same time, about $300 billion remains frozen and effectively inaccessible.

Gold already makes up almost 47% of reserves and in fact remains one of the few resources that the Kremlin can use.

The SZRU explains that pressure on reserves is growing due to budget deficits, sanctions, and the need to maintain currency stability. Against this background, other countries of the world, on the contrary, are actively increasing their gold reserves.

Intelligence also draws attention to the fact that gold for Russia is gradually turning not into a strategic reserve, but into a tool for quickly covering financial problems. At the same time, dependence on the yuan and the Chinese financial system is growing.

As previously reported, global gold prices have plummeted, showing the fastest decline in the last four decades.

Recall that in 2025, Russia sharply increased its gold sales to China . This amounts to dozens of tons, which looks like a forced sale of reserves against the backdrop of financial pressure and problems with filling the budget.

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