FRANKFURT, Dec 24 (Reuters) - Germany’s Bundesbank has this year taken back more of its gold than planned as it moves toward hoarding half of the world’s second-largest reserve at home, Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann told German daily Bild.

“We brought back significantly more gold to Germany in 2016 again than initially planned. By now, almost half of the gold reserves are in Germany,” the paper quoted Weidmann as saying in a summary of an article to be published on Saturday.

In the wake of the euro zone crisis, many ordinary Germans want to see more of the 3,381 tonnes of gold in vaults at home. Some had even questioned whether it still exists, prompting the Bundesbank to publish a long list of details on the gold holdings in 2015.

According to Bild, around 1,600 tonnes of Germany’s gold reserves are now in the country, and that figure is to rise to 1,700 tonnes by 2020.

The Bundesbank will “be done with the planned move sooner”, the paper quoted Weidmann as saying. (Reporting by Maria Sheahan, editing by G Crosse)