The central bank said its gold reserves amount to 3,384 tonnes of gold worth just €107 billion at today’s prices.
The move is the latest by the central bank, which is in the process of trying to move its gold reserves back to Germany after the eurozone sovereign debt crisis broke out in 2012 and led to public concerns and questions about the safety of Germany’s gold reserves.
Germany’s gold reserves are the second biggest in the world after those of the U.S. but Germany has been struggling to repatriate its gold reserves from the U.S. Federal Reserve in recent years. This has created wider concerns about the U.S. own gold reserves.
The Bundesbank also helpfully provided a massive 2,302 page report, presumably in an attempt to create further transparency and understanding of the issue which remains an important one to large sections of the German political and financial class and the public who are concerned about a new Eurozone debt crisis and the ongoing debasement of the euro.During the Cold War the West German Bundesbank was happy to keep its gold in the U.S. in case of nuclear war or an invasion from East Germany and the Soviet Union. Today there are public concerns about the Federal Reserve’s gold reserves and the indeed the precarious U.S. fiscal situation.
…
On top of this, the bank is setting aside €1.2 billion to cover litigation costs. Like other banks, Deutsche has been caught up in the Libor-rigging scandal and faces another investigation in Switzerland for suspected price-fixing in the precious metal market.
Gillian Tett, ourselves and many others have warned that Deutsche and its massive derivative book has the potential to be a ”European Lehman Brothers”. Is Deutsche Bank, the largest holder of Warren Buffett’s “financial weapons of mass destruction” derivatives in trouble?
Full article: Bundesbank “Reassures” Re. Gold Bullion Reserves as Deutsche Bank Shocks With €6 Billion Loss Warning (GoldCore)
Global Geopolitics 