Bank of England releases previously withheld 2023 Court of Directors minutes following a review of past redactions

The Bank of England has published previously redacted extracts from the 2023 minutes of its Court of Directors after Court decided in December 2025 that a number of items withheld under the public-interest provision in the Bank of England Act should no longer be withheld. The disclosures provide additional detail on Court’s governance and oversight across technology transformation, major change programmes, staff culture and remuneration, and the Bank’s finances. The newly released text covers, among other items, Court approvals for the lifetime cost of the Cloud Programme and for the Personal Financial Transactions policy alongside the approach to a proposed public register of interests. It also records Court decisions and discussions on technology investment budgeting including keeping the investment budget at GBP 100m, approving the RTGS Renewal budget and related contingency funding, later treating RTGS build and run costs outside the Bank’s headline budget, and approving a finance systems modernisation programme using remaining contingency funds. The extracts also include governance and finance-related actions such as progressing Annual Report and Accounts sign-off on a going concern basis, noting the implementability of a move from Cash Ratio Deposits funding to a Bank of England Levy following royal assent of the Financial Services and Markets Act, and approving the appointment of Ernst & Young as external auditor subject to National Audit Office agreement. Court will undertake a further review of items redacted in 2024 in December 2026.