The Gold Exposure of Institutional Investors

What is the optimal weight of gold in an investment portfolio? Suggestions range from 0% to more than 20%, but there is no study that systematically investigates this issue. We analyze the gold holdings (gold ETFs) of institutional investors based on 13-F filings and find that 30% of all institutions have at least some exposure to gold in their portfolio, with an average percentage holding of 1.7% with large differences across institutions and over time. The results further identify key determinants of gold holdings and demonstrate that gold holdings positively affect the performance of institutional investor portfolios.