The value of the US Treasury’s gold holdings has exceeded $1 trillion as the precious metal continues to hit new record highs. This figure is more than 90 times greater than the amount recorded on the government’s official balance sheet.
Gold prices surged past $3,824.50 an ounce on Monday, marking a 45% increase since the start of the year. Despite this, the Treasury still values its reserves based on a fixed 1973 rate of $42.22 per ounce, which puts the official figure at just over $11 billion.
Investors have turned to gold this year amid global instability, ranging from trade disputes and geopolitical tensions to fears of a potential US funding crisis. Additional momentum has come from inflows into gold-backed exchange-traded funds and recent Federal Reserve interest rate cuts.
Speculation briefly surfaced earlier this year that the US might revalue its gold reserves, potentially unlocking nearly $1 trillion to ease fiscal pressures. However, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent later clarified that no such move is under consideration.
Currently, the US holds about 261.5 million ounces of gold, much of it stored at Fort Knox in Kentucky, with the rest kept in West Point, Denver, and beneath the Federal Reserve’s New York building.
Talk of revaluation has drawn comparisons with countries like Germany, Italy, and South Africa, which updated their reserve values in recent decades. Yet for the US, such a change could bring significant consequences, including greater liquidity and an impact on the Federal Reserve’s balance-sheet management.
Conspiracy theories about the existence of the Fort Knox gold resurfaced earlier this year, fueled by remarks from political and business figures. Despite the speculation, Treasury data confirms the holdings remain intact.