Working Paper Series,
Sveriges Riksbank (Central Bank of Sweden)

Abstract: Recently, there has been increasing research interest in the historical composition of central bank reserves. However, studies in this area is hindered by a lack of data, as such data spanning multiple centuries is only available for a small number of countries. This paper presents an empirical analysis of the development of the Swedish Riksbank’s foreign exchange (FX) reserves from 1823 to 2023. It introduces two new datasets: a monthly time series with the composition of the FX reserve’s components from 1908 to 2023, and an annual dataset providing the distribution of foreign currencies within the FX reserve from 1823 to 2023. This paper offers new insights into the long-run evolution of the central bank reserves of Sweden, contributing to the broader understanding of the trajectory of historical foreign currency reserves. It is published together with an appendix file containing the data.

Keywords: Central; bank; balance; sheet;; Reserve; currencies;; Currency; composition

JEL-codes: E58; F31; N23; N24

Language: English

32 pages, March 1, 2025

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