LBMA

At the London Bullion Market Association's 2026 gathering, attendees say central banks have fresh motivations to keep expanding their official gold reserves. Discussion at the event reportedly points to renewed official-sector appetite for gold, continuing a multi-year trend of heavy central bank buying and reinforcing bullion's role as a reserve asset alongside traditional currencies.

Speaking at the LBMA 2026 conference, Bundesbank president Joachim Nagel said central banks are not finished accumulating gold, as geopolitical risks continue to reshape how countries manage their reserves. His comments reflect the ongoing shift by central banks toward bullion as a hedge against sanctions risk, currency volatility and global instability, a trend that has underpinned record gold buying in recent years.

Bundesbank President Joachim Nagel is set to headline a Day One session at the LBMA event, speaking on gold, geopolitics, and the changing role of central bank reserves. The session comes as central banks worldwide have been steadily buying gold amid geopolitical tensions and questions over the future of the dollar-based reserve system.