Russia has taken a radical turn: gold, a strategic and untouchable reserve for decades, now becomes the Kremlin’s emergency exit in the face of a unprecedented budget crisisin the middle of a war in Ukraine that would have been 4 years in February since Vladimir Putin gave the order. Meanwhile, in 2025 the federal deficit has skyrocketed: 4.2 trillion rubles (about 48,000 million dollars or 41,400 million euros at the current exchange rate) in the first ten monthscompared to just 0.2 trillion rubles in the same period of the previous year.
This fiscal hole also coincides with an abrupt drop in oil and gas revenues, traditional pillars of its budget. In October they registered a contraction of 27% annually, Euromaidan Press. At the same time, the fund authorized to support the state (National Wealth Fund or NWF), has collapsed, going from 113.5 billion dollars in 2022 (97.8 billion euros) to just 51.6 billion in 2025 (44.5 billion euros).
From accumulator to seller: a historic change in the Reserve
For years, The Russian Central Bank bought gold and stored it as a shield against sanctions and monetary shocks. But now that script has changed. For the first time, Moscow is selling physical gold on the domestic market, in the midst of a bullish rally that rather invites more accumulation, distributing it among national banks, state-owned companies and investment funds.
The figures of this dismantling are alarming: according to estimates by Ukrainian intelligence (Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine or SZRU), Sales could reach 30,000 million dollars (about 25,800 million euros at the current exchange rate)equivalent to about 230 tons in 2025; For 2026 the forecast is even higher: at least an additional 15 billion dollars (115 tons).
Since February 2022, the NWF has seen its gold reserves reduced to 405.7 tonnes by just 173.1 tonnes.
What does Russia gain and lose from all this?
sell gold allows Moscow to generate quick revenueessential to finance its current expenses, including defense expenses, which due to the war in Ukraine already account for around 40% of the federal budget.
In addition, the capital injection helps to sustain the price of the ruble against foreign currencies, key in an environment of sanctions and freezing of assets in Western currencies, according to publications The Moscow Times.
But everything has its counterpart: selling gold is not just a band-aid, but seriously compromises future financial stability. By liquidating reserves accumulated over years, Russia weakens its security cushion against external shocks.
Meanwhile, what do the economists say? Well, they warn of the risks of increasing dependence on asset sales, less room for maneuver in future crises, and fewer guarantees for external investors.
Sanctions, war and economy under pressure
Since the invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the West has frozen a large part of Russian reserves in euros and dollars, forcing the Kremlin to redefine its financial strategy. Gold and the yuan emerged as a lifeline and key alternatives.
Russia also began to buy the gold extracted from the country domestically and avoid exporting it, which further increased its reserves. up to 2,300 tonsmaking the country the fifth largest depository of gold on the planet, after the United States, Germany, Italy and France.
This cushion has served for years as a backup against sanctions, but the drop in energy income, added to growing military expenses, has emptied the fund and forced it to mobilize its strategic reserves, in the midst of another new and strong one on the Ukrainian front. You need “fuel” to maintain and increase your positions and gain as much ground as possible in the event of an eventuality. Their idea is that the greater their position of superiority, the less they would have to give up.
