Bolivia's net international reserves rose 8.7% in the third quarter, reaching US$3.93 billion on Sept. 30, the Banco Central de Bolivia (BCB) reported. But the dollars the country can actually spend fell. After payments of foreign obligations, foreign-currency reserves dropped by US$187.7 million to US$474.2 million.
That gap matters. Foreign-currency reserves pay for imports and service debt. At the end of June, the cash buffer stood at US$661.9 million. It's smaller now. El Deber noted that the headline reserve total alone doesn't show how many dollars are immediately available.
Gold Carries the Gain
The BCB, based in La Paz, said net reserves stood US$315.5 million above the roughly US$3.62 billion recorded at the end of June. Gross reserves, a different measure, reached US$3.88 billion, up 8.8%. The bank attributed the gap between net and gross figures mainly to Bolivia's position at the International Monetary Fund and currency valuations.
Gold bought on the domestic market drove most of the increase. During the quarter, the bank purchased 4.1 tonnes under Law 1503, lifting its holdings from 22.3 to 25.3 tonnes, valued at US$3.38 billion. Gold's share of reserves climbed from 80% in June to 87%. The central bank itself called that share "not recommendable."
The metal sits in several locations. Of the total, foreign banks held 14.7 tonnes, BCB vaults held 8.9 tonnes and 1.7 tonnes were in transit. Toronto Dominion Bank held the largest foreign share at 6.0 tonnes, while JPMorgan Chase Bank held 1.4 tonnes. The bank said it added one tonne to its gold holdings in September even as their market value fell by US$78 million, and it recommended greater diversification.
What the Central Bank Counts as Progress
One signal was clearly positive. Foreign-exchange operations with local banks added more than US$400 million during the quarter, which the BCB described as a "genuine accumulation" of reserves. Its report covered July through September 2026.
Credit agencies have noticed. The BCB said Moody's raised Bolivia's rating from Caa3 to Caa2 with a positive outlook in early October. That's still deep in speculative grade. The report also said Fitch and S&P Global upgraded Bolivia earlier in 2026.
The bank holds its foreign currency in short-term instruments, mainly U.S. Treasury securities. U.S. exposures represented 68% of those holdings and supranational lenders 24%. For Oct. 10 to 12, the BCB set the official exchange rate at 11.73 bolivianos per U.S. dollar.
Unanswered Questions
Much remains unclear. The report gave no release date, although its PDF was dated Oct. 8. It didn't identify which foreign obligations the bank paid, and it offered no reserves forecast for the end of 2026. The bank had made no additional official comment by Sunday, Oct. 11, and officials hadn't said how quickly they would act on their own advice to diversify away from gold.
Looking ahead, the BCB said its next quarterly report would cover October to December and cited an uncertain global backdrop, inflation pressure and geopolitical tension. Liquid dollars declined, leaving the liquid portion of reserves smaller than in June. Most of the reserve gain sat in gold, which can't be spent at once.
Why This Matters: Reserve figures can sound abstract, but they shape daily life. Imports of fuel, medicine and food depend on dollars the country can spend now, not gold sitting in vaults or in transit. When that liquid cushion shrinks while the headline number grows, the pressure lands on households if debt payments or import bills come due. The central bank's own warning about gold's 87% share suggests officials see the risk. Ratings upgrades offer some relief, yet Bolivia remains deep in speculative grade. Public institutions, including the BCB, now face a test of transparency: naming the obligations paid, publishing forecasts and acting on diversification. Without that accountability, ordinary Bolivians carry the uncertainty.