Gold is reserved in central banks in huge quantities. Since gold prices influence interest rates and stock prices, central banks keep a close tab of the power of gold as a reserve asset. They understand its value and store it in vaults as an asset of huge value and as financial insurance. They allow a fully free market for gold so they can monitor the price direction and the market sentiment as a result. In a way, market participants play in the price mechanism of gold led by central banks that manage gold like currency and in a fashion analogous to other currencies.