Sam Woods, head of the prudential regulation authority at the Bank of England, stated that the majority of banks will need time to change systems and processes and implement strategic or tactical solutions.
Woods mentioned that the authority will work with banks to develop tactical solutions, aiming to prepare them for the implementation of negative interest rates after six months, according to the monetary policy report. The Monetary Policy Committee had maintained its bond-buying program at around $1.2 trillion, following a unanimous vote by committee members to keep rates unchanged and maintain the quantitative easing program at current levels as the UK seeks to recover from the economic damage of the coronavirus pandemic. The bank had asked British banks in October of last year about their readiness for negative interest rates, after announcing in September that it was considering the possibility of lowering interest rates below zero if necessary.
