How Much Gold is Kept in the Bank of England?

The Bank of England holds around 400,000 gold bars with a value of more than £200 billion pounds. As the second-largest holder of gold reserves in the world, after the New York Federal Reserve, the Bank stores gold on behalf of customers including central banks, national governments, financial institutions, and LBMA bullion bank members.

In this blog, we dive into the Bank of England’s gold vaults to explore their history, how much gold is held in the Bank’s vaults, who holds gold within the Bank of England’s vaults, and more.

What is the Bank of England?

The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom. Founded in 1694 to manage the finances of the English Government, it is the eight-oldest bank in the world and serves as a model for central banks worldwide.

Between 1694 and 1946, the Bank of England was privately owned by stakeholders. In 1946, the Bank was nationalised, and in 1998 it became an independent public organisation that shapes economic policies, regulates financial institutions, manages debt and financial stability, and even acts as a UK government banker. The Bank was historically involved with regulating the London bullion market, however it hasn't done so since 2000, when the Financial Services Authority (FSA) was formed.

See More: What are the Types of Gold Bars?

Today, the Bank of England is headquartered in the heart of London's financial district, on a site bordered by Threadneedle Street, Prince Street, Lothbury, and Bartholomew Lane, where it has been since 1734. Because of its location, the Bank is sometimes nicknamed 'The Old Lady of Threadneedle Street'.

For the last 300 years, the Bank of England has been the focal point of gold trading in London. Its gold vaults, tucked away beneath layers of highly-secure basement levels, are famous for not only housing the UK's official gold reserves but also those of other central banks. These vaults, which contain billions of pounds of gold, are accessible only through a guarded entrance on Lothbury Street, opposite to the main pedestrian entrance on Threadneedle Street.

Venture inside and you’ll find an estimated 3% of all the gold mined on earth thus far, making the Bank of England one of the world’s biggest custodians of gold.

How much gold is in the Bank of England?

The Bank of England holds one of the world’s largest gold reserves, with around 400,000 bars of gold valued at more than £200 billion. These holdings make the Bank of England the second-largest keeper of gold after the New York Federal Reserve.

The Bank’s vault holds all the United Kingdom’s gold reserves, adding up to around 310 tonnes of gold, as well as reserves for around 30 other countries. Most of the Bank’s gold is ‘Good Delivery’ 24-carat gold, although some older bars are likely to have lower purities of around 22-carat or 900 purity gold.

Keep Reading: What Countries Have the Largest Gold Reserves?

While we have rough estimates of how much gold is held in the Bank of England, the exact amount fluctuates as the Bank’s vaults are actively used in gold transfers, loans, and exchanges. When you consider gold lending, things get even more complicated.

Gold lending is when central banks loan their stored gold to commercial bullion banks. When a central bank lends gold, the bullion bank often sells or reassigns it, replacing the gold with a financial claim in fine ounces. This means the Bank of England’s value might not contain every physical bar it holds on record at any given time. With very limited information available about gold lending in the London Gold Market, plus no discussion about it from the Bank of England, LBMA bullion banks, or central bank customers, this adds an extra layer of secrecy to the amount of gold held in the Bank of England’s vault.

Note that while the Bank of England holds a lot of gold, it doesn’t actually own the gold save for a few display pieces. The nation’s gold reserves held in the Bank of England are actually held on behalf of HM Treasury.

History of the Bank of England’s gold vaults

The Bank of England’s current location on Threadneedle Street, completed in the 1930s, was part of an ambitious rebuild that transformed the original Bank building from the ground up. During construction, crews excavated more than 15 metres to create three basement levels capable of safely storing thousands of tonnes of gold. These were surrounded by a 2.4-metre-thick reinforced concrete wall, creating a fortress of underground vaults that would be protected against both intrusion and degradation.

In the 1970s, the Bank of England’s six vaults operated under a ‘Triple Control’ system. This meant that entry to the vaults was granted only when three separate Bank departments – say, the bullion operations team, customer bank team, and audit team – coordinated and approved access. With these strict security measures, no single team could access the gold alone.

See More: The British Gold Sovereign - All You Need to Know

UK gold reserves: a history

Gold’s role in the UK monetary system goes back hundreds of years to the 17th century, when the Bank of England was first established. At that time, gold was used to back the issuance of bank notes and ensure their value and stability.

Throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, the UK was a key player in the global gold standard system, which required nations to maintain large gold reserves to back their currencies. This is when the UK’s gold reserves were at their peak, reflecting the country’s economic strength at the time. Even after the gold standard was abolished, the Bank of England continued to house reserves which provided a hedge against inflation and acted as a reliable safeguard during economic crises.

Below is a timeline of UK gold reserve history:

• 1950: The UK’s gold reserves reached an all-time-high of 2,543 tonnes.
• 1970: A significant percentage of gold reserves were sold in an effort to stabilise the pound sterling.
• Late 1990s: Gordon Brown, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, initiated a large-scale sale of UK gold reserves, selling around 400 tonnes at historically low prices. While intended to diversify assets and reduce gold dependency, the sales led to significant financial losses as gold prices surged just a few years later.

Today, the UK holds around 400,000 gold bars or 310 tonnes of gold in its reserves in the Bank of England.

UK gold reserves over time

The table below shows how the UK’s gold reserves have fluctuated over time.

YEAR	GOLD RESERVES IN TONNES
1950	2,543
1955	1,788
1960	2,489
1970	1,198
1971	690
1980	586
1990	589
1999	715
2000	588
2002	355
2005	312
2010	310
2020	310
2024	310

Why does the UK hold gold reserves?

The UK’s gold reserves help maintain economic stability, provide a hedge against inflation, and foster confidence in the country’s financial system. Let’s explore why the UK holds gold reserves in more detail.

Maintain economic stability

Gold reserves provide a financial safety net for the UK, able to be sold or leveraged to support the national currency during times of economic uncertainty. During the 2008 financial crisis, for example, countries with large gold reserves were able to better stabilise their economies.

Provide a hedge against inflation

Gold serves as protection against inflation. Unlike paper currencies that can lose purchasing power during inflation, gold historically retains and sometimes even increases in value. This unique characteristic makes gold essential for maintaining the purchasing power of the UK’s reserves, even when inflation pressures are high.

See: Exploring the Role of Gold as an Effective Hedge Against Inflation

Fosters confidence in the financial system

Gold reserves also symbolise economic strength and reliability, which helps foster confidence in the UK’s financial system both domestically and abroad. By holding substantial gold reserves, the UK reassures investors and financial institutions that it’s financially stable and able to weather future challenges.

What are the Bank of England’s gold vaults like?

The exact layout, structure, and contents of the Bank of England’s gold vaults are held in close secrecy, but there are a few details out there that give us a glimpse into what’s inside.

From what we know, the Bank of England contains ten gold vaults spread across two basement levels. These vaults span around 3,000 square metres and contain around £200 billion worth of gold. The Bank’s basements also contain cash vaults. Depending on storage needs, gold vaults are sometimes converted into cash vaults and vice versa, meaning the exact number of vaults being used to store gold can shift over time.

Inside the vaults, the gold is stacked on storage pallets built with metal frames and wooden bases. Each of these pallets are capable of holding a tonne of gold (around 80 gold bars) and can be stacked on top of each other, with some vaults containing pallets arranged up to six high. Moving and stacking these pallets relies on powered stacker pedestrian units, like the BT Staxio.

One of the Bank’s gold storage vaults is known as the ‘display’ or ‘show’ vault. This is the vault you see in the Bank of England’s media photos and the one famously visited by Queen Elizabeth II in 2012. The display vault is estimated to hold approximately 690 tonnes of gold in 270 stacks.

Another one of the Bank’s vaults was publicised in a 2012 documentary video. This vault featured pallets stacked six high and is thought to hold around 410 tonnes of gold. With these two vaults holding about a combined 1,100 tonnes of gold, we can guess the remaining eight vaults contain an additional 3,000 tonnes of gold.

Who stores gold in the Bank of England?

The Bank of England’s gold customers include central banks, national governments, international financial institutions, commercial LBMA bullion bank members, and national monetary authorities. According to the LBMA, the Bank acts as gold custodian for about 100 customers.

At least 72 overseas central banks maintain gold accounts with the Bank of England, including:

• Germany: Holding 438 tonnes of gold
• Austria: Holding 208 tonnes of gold
• Switzerland: Holding 224 tonnes of gold
• Belgium: Holding 200 tonnes of gold.

Continue Reading: Why Central Banks Buy Gold

Other international organisations, like the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and Bank for International Settlements (BIS) are known to store gold within the Bank. As one of four official depositories for the IMF, it’s estimated the Bank of England holds 600 tonnes of gold for the IMF (though exact details are kept private).

How much does it cost to store gold in the Bank of England?

Central banks storing gold at the Bank of England pay a nightly charge of 3.5 pence per bar. So if a foreign central bank holds 100 tonnes of gold, it would pay an annual storage fee of around £102,200.

Keep Reading: Gold vs Shares - FTSE 100. Should I buy physical gold over FTSE 100 shares?

Has anyone ever stolen gold from the Bank of England?

Thanks to its strong security measures, no gold has ever been stolen from the Bank of England’s vaults. That said, one legend tells of a close call in the Victorian era…

In 1836, the Bank’s Directors began receiving anonymous letters from an individual claiming he had access to their gold. To prove it, he proposed a meeting in the Bank of England gold vault at the time of their choosing. Intrigued, the Directors gathered in the vault one evening as requested. At the agreed-upon hour, a noise was heard from beneath the floor and a man appeared from below the floorboards.

The man was a sewer worker who, during repairs, had stumbled upon an old drain that ran directly beneath the Bank’s gold vault. Despite having had direct access to the vault’s contents, the man hadn’t taken a single bar. For his honesty, the Bank of England rewarded the man with a gift of £800 – which would be worth around £64,000 today.

Summary: How much gold is kept in the Bank of England?

The Bank of England is a safe haven for many countries, central banks, and financial institutions, holding large gold reserves within its secure underground vaults. Although many of the details remain hidden from the public, we have enough information to know that there’s enough gold in there to support national economies worldwide.

The world of gold bars, vaults, and investing isn’t just reserved for major banks and institutions – you, too, can secure your financial future with 24-carat gold bullion bars. These investments have enduring value that diversifies portfolios and provides a hedge against inflation. Whether you’re new to bullion investing or growing your collection, browse our range of LBMA-approved gold bullion bars to grow and preserve your wealth today.