Central Bank has little gold as a safe haven asset despite the country being a major producer

Contrary to the trend of many central banks in the world for several years, of buying more and more gold to have it as a safe haven asset, the Central Bank of the Dominican Republic maintains a minimum amount that would be equivalent to 0.47 tons, which has not varied for decades.

At the end of 2024, the Dominican Central Bank reported within its assets about US$47.7 million dollars in gold as a reserve, which is equivalent to RD$2,907 million pesos.

These values would correspond to 0.57 tons of gold, which have not varied since the year 2000, according to the Trading Economics platform.

At the end of 2023, these values were RD$2.199 million. The amount of gold did not vary, but its value increased.

The exchange rate instability and uncertainty that has been observed in this year 2025 has led more and more investors and central banks around the world to choose gold as a safe haven asset, since the values of this precious metal are not as conditioned by geopolitical and monetary conditions as the dollar.

However, the Dominican Republic does not have a monetary system backed by this metal.

The largest amount of Central Bank reserves are in cash dollars, which help it, much more than gold, to maintain the value of the Dominican peso.

Currently the Central Bank has US$14,793.3 million dollars in international reserves.

However, other central banks, mainly Asian ones, are buying gold, which has been called a “gold rush”.

According to data from the World Gold Council, in the last three years, the world’s central banks bought more than 1,000 tons annually, more than double the average 400 to 500 tons per year they had bought in the previous ten years.

In May of this year, the National Bank of Kazakhstan led gold purchases by acquiring 7 tons, raising its reserves to 299 tons.

Central banks such as those of Turkey and Poland bought 6 tons each that month.

Poland positioned itself as the largest net buyer of gold in 2025, with 67 tons added to its reserves. According to the Infobae article “Golden fever: which central banks have the most gold and which bought the most in 2025 so far.”

The People’s Bank of China and the Czech National Bank added 2 tons each, while the National Bank of the Kyrgyz Republic.