The Bank of England (BoE) has published a speech delivered by its director of financial market infrastructure (FMIs), Sasha Mills. Mills outlined the BoE’s priorities for FMI regulation in 2025, focusing on ensuring operational and financial resilience and facilitating innovation in payments, settlement and clearing.

The Bank of England (BoE) has published a speech by its deputy governor for financial stability, Sarah Bredeen, delivered at the BoE and Warwick Business School Innovation in Money and Payments Conference. Breeden outlines a proposed payments framework designed to enable a seamless exchange between various forms of money, including traditional and tokenised commercial bank deposits, stablecoins and central bank money,  and at the same time protect financial stability and trust in money.

The Bank of England (BoE) has published a speech delivered by its executive director of payments, Victoria Cleland, at the Pay 360 2025 event, emphasising the importance of innovation in wholesale payments to build a resilient and innovative future. Cleland stated that the BoE focused on financial and monetary stability and that the BoE’s goal is to ensure that innovation develops in a way that supports continued resilience and broader financial stability. She highlighted the need to modernise the payment infrastructure, expanding access to the real-time gross settlement (RTGS) service, adopting the ISO 20022 global messaging standard, and engaging in experimentation with new technologies. Cleland stated that these initiatives aim to enhance efficiency, resilience, and inclusivity in the payments landscape, ultimately benefiting society and supporting economic growth.

The Bank of England (BoE) has published a speech delivered by its governor, Andrew Bailey, addressing the significant changes in financial market activity and their implications for financial stability. Bailey highlights the growing role of non-banks and market-based finance, and introduced two key innovations: the System-Wide Exploratory Scenario (SWES) exercise and the Contingent non-bank financial institution (NBFI) Repo Facility (CNRF). Bailey also pointed out potential vulnerabilities in the financial system due to increased leverage, interconnectedness, and opacity in certain markets. He emphasised the necessity of adapting assessment tools and intervention methods to keep pace with the evolving financial landscape, stressing the importance of global standards and the evolving role of central banks in providing liquidity.

Law360: The Bank of England (BoE) has said that the pensions sector has significantly improved its financial and operational resilience since the crisis that hit liability-driven investment (LDI) funds in 2022.

Law360: The Bank of England (BoE) has said it will consider the risks posed by offshore reinsurance contracts when it carries out a stress test on life insurers in 2025.

The Bank of England (BoE) has published an update on its efforts to enhance depositor outcomes in the event of bank or building society insolvency. The BoE states that the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) has launched a digital payment portal,  concluding a major deliverable of the project on improving depositor outcomes in bank insolvency (IDOBI).

The Bank of England (BoE) has issued a policy statement (PS) updating its approach to enforcement in response to the Financial Services and Markets Act 2023 (FSMA 2023). The PS updates the BoE’s enforcement policies and procedures for financial market infrastructures (FMIs), critical third parties (CTPs), and the wholesale cash distribution (WCD) market, and includes feedback to responses to the BoE’s March 2024 consultation paper (CP) on the topic. The BoE and Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) have revised their enforcement policies and procedures (Enforcement SoPP) accordingly. The updated Enforcement SoPP is effective from 12 November 2024.

Law360, London: The Bank of England (BoE) said on 5 November 2025 it would ensure that its new regime to allow corporations to set up captive insurance companies would be internationally competitive.

The Bank of England (BoE) has welcomed recommendations by the API Panel of Experts (APEX) for the development of payment APIs. The recommendations were published in the October 2024 report to the G20 by the Bank for International Settlements’ Committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures (CPMI): ‘Promoting the harmonisation of application programming interfaces to enhance cross-border payments: recommendations and toolkit’. The BoE views the recommendations and their associated action items as a timely and practical push for increased harmonisation of APIs in cross-border payments which is in line with the objectives of the G20’s cross-border payments programme.

The Bank of England (BoE) has published the responses it received to its February 2024 discussion paper on exploring longer operating hours for Real-Time Gross Settlement (RTGS). The discussion paper was part of the BoE’s Future Roadmap for the RTGS service. The response paper updates on the BoE’s current analysis and vision for the path ahead. Taking into account industry feedback and public policy considerations, the BOE has decided that there are clear public policy benefits from extending RTGS and CHAPS settlement hours, including to enhance cross-border payments, reduce settlement risk and liquidity costs, and to facilitate innovation and provide a better experience for customers in the evolving payments landscape. The BoE is therefore minded to extend hours.

The Bank of England (BoE) has issued a joint press release with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Working Group on Sterling Risk-Free Reference Rates (RFR Working Group) to note that LIBOR came to an end on 30 September 2024; all 35 LIBOR settings have permanently ceased and the RFR Working Group will be wound down. The statement includes factors for firms to consider going forward.