I have a question(or two): When you say "more of both" - meaning both gold and the US dollar - just to clarify, central banks are buying more of the US dollar as well as buying more of gold. So then, this is not a measure of diversification by the central banks, in fact it would be the opposite. "More of both" meaning more of more majorly just two (as opposed to many)?
The most recent report by gold.org - the 1st quarter of 2026 - indicates that the US has by quite a good distance the most gold reserves. By tonnage we have:
USA - 8,133.46
Italy - 2,451.84
China - 2,313.46
Russian Federation - 2,304.75
India - 880.52
But that total reserves - whatever that means at this website - is:
China - 3,751,138.07
USA - 1,446,361.69
Japan - 1,374,730.05
India - 704,997.54
Italy - 453,752.42
Russian Federation - AWAITED (and what does this designation mean?)
Is perhaps the US and it's proxies trying to gain a majority of the gold market and that China and it's partners are trying to stop that or beat them to it?
Hi Lena, I guess the real question would be if the gold price dropped significantly, would it still be on top? Clearly, the meteoric rise of the price of gold has something to do with this.
It is also ironic that at the same time central banks are replacing fiat with gold, they continue to foist fiat on their citizens. Do you believe any country, even a small one, would be able to issue a currency with gold convertibility?
Sorry I wasn't clearer. I meant the price of gold rising made it the highest category in central banks. In other words, to calculate gold as the highest category in central banks, it has to be priced in dollars or local currency. If gold dropped say, 25%, would gold still be the highest category in central banks is what I am getting at.
While central bank purchases have something to do with the price, the huge jump in gold prices was due to investors jumping in. As a sign of this, when the central bank of Turkey recently sold massive amounts of gold to support their currency, the price only dipped momentarily. There is also gold coming into the market continuously from mining as well as consumer selling of gold jewelry, coins, etc. In fact, at least in silver, refiners got so backed up, they wouldn't even quote prices to dealers until they worked down the refining backlog. When precious metal prices are high, those who need money cash in.
Hi Lena, I’ve been following your work for quite some time on YouTube and value the clarity you bring to complex questions of political economy and geopolitics. Lately you've interviewed some pretty big names from my ecosystem. Given the scale of your audience and the influence of your channel and Substack, I’d appreciate a bit more transparency about your formal background.
Before I cite your work, most all of which I agree with, it would be very helpful to know which universities you attended and which jurisdictions/roles you’ve held professionally.
Once you mentioned that YouTube was acting weird I looked and noticed that you have almost six hundred thousand followers. I wondered what your background is I could find nothing solid. It seemed odd to me. Can you disclose a little more please?
"Gold Surpasses U.S. Treasuries as Central Banks Abandon Dollar Assets"
You sure wouldn't know it by the current price of gold, but then the gold price is manipulated, at least in the US.
I am very untrusting of the reported amount of gold held by the US.
Yes, and even if all the 8000 tonnes really are in Fort Knox and New York, it's moot, because the crazy leveraging, paper gold to physical.
Yes, naked short selling.
Thanks Lena,
I have a question(or two): When you say "more of both" - meaning both gold and the US dollar - just to clarify, central banks are buying more of the US dollar as well as buying more of gold. So then, this is not a measure of diversification by the central banks, in fact it would be the opposite. "More of both" meaning more of more majorly just two (as opposed to many)?
The most recent report by gold.org - the 1st quarter of 2026 - indicates that the US has by quite a good distance the most gold reserves. By tonnage we have:
USA - 8,133.46
Italy - 2,451.84
China - 2,313.46
Russian Federation - 2,304.75
India - 880.52
But that total reserves - whatever that means at this website - is:
China - 3,751,138.07
USA - 1,446,361.69
Japan - 1,374,730.05
India - 704,997.54
Italy - 453,752.42
Russian Federation - AWAITED (and what does this designation mean?)
Is perhaps the US and it's proxies trying to gain a majority of the gold market and that China and it's partners are trying to stop that or beat them to it?
Thanks again.
Hi Lena, I guess the real question would be if the gold price dropped significantly, would it still be on top? Clearly, the meteoric rise of the price of gold has something to do with this.
It is also ironic that at the same time central banks are replacing fiat with gold, they continue to foist fiat on their citizens. Do you believe any country, even a small one, would be able to issue a currency with gold convertibility?
"Clearly, the meteoric rise of the price of gold has something to do with this."
What is the cause, and what is the effect? I submit that central banks' purchases of gold have caused the price to rise.
Sorry I wasn't clearer. I meant the price of gold rising made it the highest category in central banks. In other words, to calculate gold as the highest category in central banks, it has to be priced in dollars or local currency. If gold dropped say, 25%, would gold still be the highest category in central banks is what I am getting at.
While central bank purchases have something to do with the price, the huge jump in gold prices was due to investors jumping in. As a sign of this, when the central bank of Turkey recently sold massive amounts of gold to support their currency, the price only dipped momentarily. There is also gold coming into the market continuously from mining as well as consumer selling of gold jewelry, coins, etc. In fact, at least in silver, refiners got so backed up, they wouldn't even quote prices to dealers until they worked down the refining backlog. When precious metal prices are high, those who need money cash in.
"When precious metal prices are high, those who need money cash in."
Yes, that is a big part of the downtrend.
Hi Lena, I’ve been following your work for quite some time on YouTube and value the clarity you bring to complex questions of political economy and geopolitics. Lately you've interviewed some pretty big names from my ecosystem. Given the scale of your audience and the influence of your channel and Substack, I’d appreciate a bit more transparency about your formal background.
Before I cite your work, most all of which I agree with, it would be very helpful to know which universities you attended and which jurisdictions/roles you’ve held professionally.
Once you mentioned that YouTube was acting weird I looked and noticed that you have almost six hundred thousand followers. I wondered what your background is I could find nothing solid. It seemed odd to me. Can you disclose a little more please?
I know Lena has said she audited banks, so clearly a strong background in finance, and as you can tell from her videos, economics as well.
Russia sold quite a bit of gold recently, while it's been hugely over-valued.
At the same time, they've been mining a lot, where it costs $2500 per ounce to mine.