The government on Wednesday dismissed claims that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) sold gold worth around $12 billion, calling a media report fake.
In a post on X, the Press Information Bureau (PIB) Fact Check unit rejected claims that the RBI had offloaded a significant portion of its gold reserves, citing official data released by the central bank.
"According to RBI, the share of gold in India's foreign exchange reserves rose from 13.92 per cent at the end of September 2025 to 16.70 per cent on March 31, 2026, and further to 16.85 per cent as of May 22, 2026," PIB Fact Check said.
The clarification came after claims surfaced suggesting that the central bank may have sold gold worth nearly $12 billion.
PIB further noted that the RBI regularly discloses its physical gold holdings through its Monthly Bulletin and said the status of the central bank's gold stock remains unchanged.
According to RBI data released on May 22, the share of gold in overall foreign exchange reserves continued to increase, contradicting claims of any large-scale sale.
The data showed that India's physical gold reserves stood at around 880 metric tonnes as of April 24, 2026, largely unchanged from previous disclosures.
According to RBI data, the value of gold reserves increased significantly over the past year, rising from $81.82 billion in early May 2025 to around $120.24 billion by late April 2026.
The share of gold within India's overall foreign exchange reserves has also increased steadily during the period, reflecting both valuation gains and changes in reserve composition.
India's total foreign exchange reserves stood at around $698.49 billion as of April 24, according to the latest RBI data.
PIB urged users to rely on official RBI communication channels for authentic information regarding the country's reserves and monetary data.
The central bank further added that details regarding its gold holdings are regularly disclosed in its Monthly Bulletin published on the central bank's official website.
The RBI also advised members of the public to rely only on official information released by the central bank from time to time in such matters.
"Members of public are, therefore, advised to rely on official information published by RBI from time to time in such matters," the central bank explained.
The clarification came after a Bloomberg report claimed that the RBI may have reduced part of its gold holdings to protect its foreign-currency reserves from the impact of the ongoing conflict in West Asia.
According to the report, the RBI likely sold gold reserves worth around $12 billion during the two weeks ending May 22, while purchasing $7.5 billion in foreign-currency assets.
The report further stated that the RBI's interventions in the foreign exchange market appeared to have supported the rupee, helping the Indian currency perform better than most Asian peers since May 20, when it touched a record low.
