What's the difference between LBMA vault holdings and Bank of England holdings?

LBMA reports two separate figures each month: total London vault holdings (across all LBMA-approved commercial vaults — JP Morgan, HSBC, Brink's, Loomis, Malca-Amit, ICBC Standard) and a separate Bank of England-only figure. The Bank of England figure represents central-bank and sovereign holdings stored at the BoE, while the commercial total represents private and institutional metal stored elsewhere in London. We surface both so you can monitor the official vs commercial split.

Where does the LBMA gold price (formerly London Gold Fix) come from?

The LBMA Gold Price is set twice daily by an electronic auction operated by ICE Benchmark Administration, with prices published at 10:30 AM and 3:00 PM London time. The auction has 15 direct participants and operates as an open-outcry-style electronic match. MetalCharts pulls both AM and PM fixings directly from the published ICE feed.

How often does LBMA vault data update?

LBMA publishes vault holdings reports monthly, on the last business day of the month covering positions as of the prior month-end. There is therefore a roughly one-month lag between the reporting date and the actual vault snapshot. We refresh our vault charts within hours of LBMA's publication.

Why are LBMA vault holdings reported in tonnes but COMEX is in troy ounces?

That's how each exchange chooses to report. LBMA is a London-based institution serving sovereign and institutional clients accustomed to metric tonnes, while COMEX is a US-based futures venue using ounces. We display the data in the source unit and provide an ounce-equivalent in tooltips so cross-exchange comparison is convenient.

What is the LBMA gold clearing statistic?

LBMA publishes daily and monthly clearing statistics showing the total value of gold and silver transferred between LBMA members each business day. This is a useful proxy for over-the-counter (OTC) London bullion market activity, which dwarfs futures market volume but is otherwise hard to measure directly. We track the daily clearing volumes and dollar value on the /lbma page.

Does MetalCharts include unallocated vs allocated gold holdings?

LBMA does not publish a breakdown of unallocated vs allocated gold in its monthly vault reports — the figure represents total metal in custody, regardless of ownership structure. The unallocated/allocated distinction matters for counterparty risk but isn't directly observable from the published vault totals.

How does LBMA vault data compare to COMEX?

LBMA vault holdings dwarf COMEX inventory — London is the world's primary physical gold and silver settlement venue, while COMEX is primarily a futures-based market with a smaller delivery surface. Looking at the two together gives a more complete picture of where physical metal actually lives.

LBMA Methodology

How MetalCharts sources and presents LBMA vault holdings, gold and silver fix prices, and London clearing statistics.

Written by

MetalCharts Editorial

Published May 12, 2026

Source data

The London Bullion Market Association (LBMA) is the principal global trade body for OTC gold and silver markets, headquartered in London. It publishes the monthly vault report — total ounces of gold and silver held in LBMA-approved London commercial vaults, plus a separate Bank of England figure for sovereign/central-bank holdings — and operates (via ICE Benchmark Administration) the twice-daily LBMA Gold Price auction that sets the London gold benchmark.

MetalCharts pulls vault holdings from LBMA’s monthly published report, the LBMA gold and silver fix prices from the ICE feed, and the daily London bullion clearing statistics from LBMA’s daily clearing report.

Vault data: what it does and doesn’t tell you

The monthly LBMA vault report represents total gold and silver in custody at LBMA-approved facilities. It does not break out unallocated vs allocated ownership, ETF custody, or sovereign holdings (other than the separately-reported Bank of England line). The figure is therefore best used as a high-level gauge of how much metal physically lives in London, not as a direct indicator of free float.

There is a roughly one-month lag between the reporting date (last business day of the month) and the position date (prior month-end). Charts on /lbma/gold and /lbma/silver are time-stamped by position date, not publication date.

LBMA Gold Price (formerly London Fix)

The LBMA Gold Price is the global benchmark used by central banks, refiners, ETFs, and commercial buyers to value gold positions. It is set twice daily — 10:30 AM and 3:00 PM London time — via an electronic auction operated by ICE Benchmark Administration. Fifteen direct participants submit buy and sell orders; the algorithm iterates until supply and demand match within a tolerance, and the resulting price is the published fix.

The silver equivalent — the LBMA Silver Price — runs once daily at noon London time using the same auction mechanism. Platinum and palladium fixings also exist under ICE.

Daily clearing data

LBMA member banks settle their OTC gold and silver positions through a daily clearing process. The total value and volume of cleared metal each business day is published the following day. This is one of the few direct windows into the otherwise-opaque London OTC market, which dwarfs futures market volumes by an order of magnitude.

We surface daily clearing volume (in ounces) and clearing value (in USD) on the /lbma page with full historical context back to LBMA’s original 1996 publication start.

Limitations

LBMA reports vault holdings monthly, not daily. Intra-month vault movements are not visible to outside observers.

The vault total includes ETF-allocated metal (the SPDR Gold Trust and iShares Silver Trust both custody substantially in LBMA London vaults), which means LBMA vault changes can be dominated by ETF flows rather than by physical demand from new sources.

We are not affiliated with LBMA or ICE Benchmark Administration. All trademark rights to the underlying data remain with their respective owners.

Frequently asked questions

What's the difference between LBMA vault holdings and Bank of England holdings?: LBMA reports two separate figures each month: total London vault holdings (across all LBMA-approved commercial vaults — JP Morgan, HSBC, Brink's, Loomis, Malca-Amit, ICBC Standard) and a separate Bank of England-only figure. The Bank of England figure represents central-bank and sovereign holdings stored at the BoE, while the commercial total represents private and institutional metal stored elsewhere in London. We surface both so you can monitor the official vs commercial split.
Where does the LBMA gold price (formerly London Gold Fix) come from?: The LBMA Gold Price is set twice daily by an electronic auction operated by ICE Benchmark Administration, with prices published at 10:30 AM and 3:00 PM London time. The auction has 15 direct participants and operates as an open-outcry-style electronic match. MetalCharts pulls both AM and PM fixings directly from the published ICE feed.
How often does LBMA vault data update?: LBMA publishes vault holdings reports monthly, on the last business day of the month covering positions as of the prior month-end. There is therefore a roughly one-month lag between the reporting date and the actual vault snapshot. We refresh our vault charts within hours of LBMA's publication.
Why are LBMA vault holdings reported in tonnes but COMEX is in troy ounces?: That's how each exchange chooses to report. LBMA is a London-based institution serving sovereign and institutional clients accustomed to metric tonnes, while COMEX is a US-based futures venue using ounces. We display the data in the source unit and provide an ounce-equivalent in tooltips so cross-exchange comparison is convenient.
What is the LBMA gold clearing statistic?: LBMA publishes daily and monthly clearing statistics showing the total value of gold and silver transferred between LBMA members each business day. This is a useful proxy for over-the-counter (OTC) London bullion market activity, which dwarfs futures market volume but is otherwise hard to measure directly. We track the daily clearing volumes and dollar value on the /lbma page.
Does MetalCharts include unallocated vs allocated gold holdings?: LBMA does not publish a breakdown of unallocated vs allocated gold in its monthly vault reports — the figure represents total metal in custody, regardless of ownership structure. The unallocated/allocated distinction matters for counterparty risk but isn't directly observable from the published vault totals.
How does LBMA vault data compare to COMEX?: LBMA vault holdings dwarf COMEX inventory — London is the world's primary physical gold and silver settlement venue, while COMEX is primarily a futures-based market with a smaller delivery surface. Looking at the two together gives a more complete picture of where physical metal actually lives.