This so-called ‘Corporate Bond Purchase Scheme’ (CBPS) was increased to £ in 2020, in response to the economic impact of Covid. It’s therefore fair to ask: as an investor in corporate assets in our own right, should we be taking steps to support the achievement of net zero? The Bank as investor: reconciling monetary policy goals and market mispricing  The first point to underscore is that the CBPS began as, and will remain, a monetary policy tool. That means that the overall target stock will continue to be set by the MPC to achieve its inflation objective. So, in due course, when the economic outlook allows, the fund will unwind. We do not expect to be a permanent investor. To achieve the policy goals of the Scheme, eligible bonds must be issued by non-financial companies making a material contribution to UK economic activity. And to protect public money, the Bank imposes controls on credit quality, portfolio concentration and other financial risks.12 These elements of the scheme will not change. A more interesting question relates to the composition of the CBPS. Up to now, we have aimed to replicate the structure of the sterling corporate bond market itself. We do that by dividing up our purchases across sectors according to the amount of debt outstanding; and within sectors using competitive reverse auctions. The rationale for allocating purchases in this way has been to minimise the impact of the CBPS on relative borrowing costs across sectors and firms.

This in turn enhances the potential for the industry to provide financing to households and enterprises thus contributing to the economic growth process. Another instance where efficiency and potential of the industry can be enhanced is migration from paper-based payments to electronic payments. This would provide significant benefits to all parties as it provides a more efficient and reliable payment instrument and it attracts lower costs, increased convenience and a higher level of security. In promoting financial literacy, several issues need to be addressed. One of the most critical issues is the apathy towards information. Irrational behavior, the inability to comprehend complex information, the perception that information is unreliable, or more often than not the reluctance to invest the time to study the information, are all reasons that increase such apathy. In addressing financial literacy, the information provided to consumers needs to be simple, brief, contextualised to the needs of the consumer and delivered at the right time. An example is providing special, inclusive programmes for financially excluded groups that are at different levels of development and that face different challenges in managing their financial affairs. The emerging best practices in enhancing financial literacy clearly suggest that an integrated and coordinated delivery of financial literacy initiatives is needed to address the issues highlighted above. This requires a comprehensive approach involving central banks, government ministries, NGOs and corporations to work collaboratively to promote financial literacy. Attention needs to be given to greater strategic focus on the outcomes to be achieved by the financial literacy programs.