(in tonnes – due to the wild fluctuation of the price of gold)

1. US 8,133.5

2. Germany 3,401.0

3. The IMF 2,846.7

4. Italy 2,451.8

5. France 2,435.4

6. China, 1,054.1

7. Switzerland 1,040.1

8. Russia 775.2

9. Japan 765.2

10. Netherlands 615.5

With the value of gold skyrocketing due to economic uncertainties surrounding nearly every other investment, it is sometimes good to know ‘who owns the most shares of gold?’ The answer to that question is that nation-states, by and large, still hold the most reserves of gold of any entity on the face of the Earth. Even small Switzerland and broke-as-heck Italy have gotten in on the act. The key to gold investment is to have a lot of it and be able to weather downturns, which used to be frequent. While many have probably missed gold’s historic highs, it is still a safe investment and should be considered among any well-planned investment strategies, just not right this moment with values being so high. That is, unless, you are convinced the stock-market apocalypse arrives tomorrow and you need somewhere safe to stash your millions.

(Information brought to you by Financial Edge over at Investopedia.com).