Market Notice
At its February 2022 meeting, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) asked the Bank of England (the Bank) to design a programme for selling corporate bonds held in the Asset Purchase Facility (APF), with the stock of holdings to be fully unwound no earlier than towards the end of 2023. The Bank commenced a sales programme in September 2022, and at its May 2023 meeting the MPC noted that sales were expected to conclude in the coming weeks.
The Bank has today concluded all of its planned sales, with the stock of corporate bond holdings reduced by over 95% from the initial purchase proceeds of £20bn. As previously announced, the remaining very short maturity bonds representing £833mn of initial purchase proceeds will continue to be held in the portfolio, maturing fully by 5 April 2024. The Bank intends to hold these bonds to maturity, though will continue to consider participation in any open market tender offers on a case-by-case basis.