BlockBeats News, July 22, Russia is reducing its gold reserves, breaking the country's trend of increasing gold holdings for over 20 years. So far this year, Russia's official gold reserves have decreased for 6 consecutive months, dropping by about 43.5 tons as of early July to a low not seen since 2022.

Data shows that Russia's current gold reserves are around 73.4 million troy ounces (about 2,282 tons), valued at approximately $299 billion. Meanwhile, Russia's total international reserves decreased from $747.4 billion at the end of May to $720.4 billion at the end of June, but the forex reserves remained fairly stable, indicating that the reserve reduction mainly came from gold assets.

Analysts believe that the main reason for Russia's gold sales is increasing financial pressure. Due to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict, declining energy revenue, and expanding government expenditure, Russia's budget deficit has widened to about 4.6 trillion rubles as of the end of March. Some gold may be sold to domestic banks or converted into foreign exchange to ease financial and liquidity pressures.

Previously, Russia has long been a key buyer in the global gold market. Between 2002 and 2025, Russia accumulated over 1,900 tons of gold purchases, with a significant divestment only occurring in 2005 over the past 24 years.

This divestment comes amid high gold prices. The Russian central bank had previously stated that due to gold prices breaking the historical high of $5,500 per ounce, it had sold off part of its gold reserves. Analysts believe that Russia is not abandoning its gold strategy but transforming gold from a long-term reserve asset into a source of liquid funds under financial pressure.