Russia is stocking up on gold as Putin ditches US dollars

Vladimir Putin’s quest to break Russia’s reliance on the US dollar has set off a literal gold rush.

Within the span of a decade, the country quadrupled its bullion reserves and 2018 marked the most ambitious year yet. And the pace is keeping up so far this year. Data from the central bank show that holdings rose by one-million ounces in February, the most since November.