The global "gold buying craze" has gained a heavyweight new member! The South Korean central bank has made its first gold investment in 13 years, quietly purchasing $250 million in ETFs in the second quarter.

According to the Zhitong Finance APP, the Bank of Korea is signaling its return to the global central bank gold-buying camp. Based on the 13F filing submitted to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on August 12, the Bank of Korea held 679,765 shares of SPDR Gold Trust (the largest physical gold ETF in the world) as of the end of the second quarter of 2026, with a market value of approximately $250.4 million. This marks the first gold-related investment by the Bank of Korea in 13 years since 2013.