In 2020, reserve managers have faced a crisis unlike any in recent history. The spreading coronavirus has tested the resilience – and the reserves – they had built following the global financial crisis, the Asian financial crisis and the Latin American debt crisis.

This makes the release of the debut Reserve Benchmarks report, which covers data contributed to Central Banking from 38 central banks (see box: The Reserve Benchmarks 2020 data release, further down in this article) particularly