Treasury Secretary said U.S. gold reserves are fully accounted for under a September 2024 audit and reiterated there are no plans to revalue the holdings or use them for a sovereign wealth fund.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said all 147,341,858.382 fine troy ounces of gold held at Fort Knox remain present and accounted for, citing a September 30, 2024 audit report as evidence amid renewed public scrutiny over U.S. gold reserves. The statement followed questions raised in early 2025 by President Trump and Elon Musk, who revived long-running doubts about whether the bullion is fully there. The U.S. officially holds 261.5 million ounces of gold, the world’s largest government stockpile, with roughly 56% stored at Fort Knox and the rest kept at other Treasury and Federal Reserve facilities. Federal law still carries the gold on the books at $42.22 per ounce, leaving the entire reserve valued at about $11 billion for accounting purposes even though market prices imply a far higher value. Bessent said there are no plans to revalue the reserves or use them to support a sovereign wealth fund, and added that he does not intend to visit Fort Knox personally. The comments keep Treasury policy unchanged even as critics continue to argue that annual internal audits are not a substitute for a full independent public review of the depository.