RBI balance sheet swells over ₹76 lakh crore in FY25

The Reserve Bank of India’s balance sheet grew by a significant 8.2% in FY25 to ₹76.25 lakh crore from ₹70.47 lakh crore, driven by rising gold holdings, higher domestic investments, and steady accumulation of foreign assets.

According to the RBI’s Annual Report released on Thursday, the increase on the asset side was led by a sharp 52% jump in the value of gold holdings, which reached ₹6.68 lakh crore, and a 14.3% rise in domestic investments, while foreign investments inched up 1.7%. On the liabilities side, the expansion was fuelled by a 6% rise in currency in circulation, a 17.3% increase in revaluation reserves, and a 23.3% uptick in other liabilities, including surplus payable to the government.

The composition of RBI’s assets now shows a modest rebalancing — with domestic assets forming 25.73% of the total (up from 23.31% a year earlier), while foreign currency assets and gold make up 74.27%, slightly down from 76.69% the previous year.

The standout feature was the jump in gold reserves — both in physical terms and valuation. The central bank added 57.5 metric tonnes of gold in FY25, taking total holdings to 879.6 tonnes. Of this, 200.6 tonnes are now held domestically — nearly double from the 100.3 tonnes held in India the year before. The rest remains abroad. The surge was further amplified by a rise in global gold prices and rupee depreciation.

Foreign currency assets rose modestly from ₹48.02 lakh crore to ₹48.83 lakh crore. However, the revaluation account — particularly the Currency and Gold Revaluation Account (CGRA) — saw a substantial increase, jumping by ₹1.72 lakh crore to ₹13.03 lakh crore, indicating strong mark-to-market gains from gold and forex holdings.

Meanwhile, revaluation reserves for rupee securities (IRA-RS) moved from a negative balance to a positive ₹16,843 crore, aided by softer yields, while the valuation account for forward contracts (FCVA) recorded a gain of ₹6,985 crore, up from ₹170 crore last year.

To fortify financial stability, the RBI raised its Contingency Fund (CF) from ₹4.29 lakh crore to ₹5.42 lakh crore, maintaining a target of 7.5% of balance sheet size under its revised economic capital framework.

The FY25 balance sheet points to a central bank operating with greater financial muscle and risk buffers as global macroeconomic uncertainty continues to loom.