The Bank of England has published its suite of annual reports for 2026, providing the most comprehensive account of the central bank's activities, finances and governance during a year that saw the institution navigate the final stages of the inflationary episode that defined the middle years of the decade.
The reports cover the Bank's core functions: monetary policy, financial stability, prudential regulation, payment systems, and the management of the government's debt and foreign exchange reserves. Each report provides a detailed account of the Bank's activities and an assessment of its performance against its statutory objectives.
The monetary policy report acknowledges that the Bank's forecasting performance during the inflationary period was poor, a candid admission that reflects the Governor's commitment to transparency and accountability. The report identifies several factors that contributed to the forecasting failures, including the unusual nature of the post-pandemic recovery, the energy price shock caused by the war in Ukraine and subsequent disruptions to global energy markets, and the limitations of the economic models that the Bank used to interpret the data.
The financial stability report concludes that the UK financial system remains resilient but identifies several risks that require ongoing attention, including the growth of private credit markets, the concentration of critical services in a small number of third-party providers, and the potential for geopolitical shocks to disrupt financial markets.
The reports are published alongside the Bank's annual accounts, which show that the Bank's operating expenditure was £680 million for the year, funded primarily by the income from its monetary policy operations.
Join in — free. Comments on Daily Junction are for members, so real names stay rare and bots stay out.
One field. We email you a 6-digit code — no password needed. Your comment is kept while you do it.
Under 13? You’ll need a parent’s OK first — it takes them one click.