Bank of England employees will lose a 300-year-old job perk after it was announced that a small staff bank within Threadneedle Street is closing, reports The Guardian.
Staff had been able to access Bank of England accounts for personal use, even after retirement. But the Bank has confirmed that the service is coming to an end following a cost-cutting review initiated by its governor, Mark Carney, soon after he arrived in 2013.
The Bank’s internal bank concluded that it could not compete with the range of services, including online banking, offered by high street institutions, and said all staff accounts would be closed by next year on grounds of costs and practicality.
Until recently, account holders had received Bank debit cards and chequebooks, distinguished by the sort code 10-00-00, underlining its position as the grandest branch in Britain. The bank has two dedicated cash machines inside the Bank’s building.
The days of personal banking at Threadneedle Street had been numbered since the launch of an efficiency review, which resulted in the loss of 100 support jobs. No new accounts were allowed to be opened during the consultation.
A Bank spokesperson said: “After a full consultation process, the Bank confirmed to customers in November 2015 that it would close its personal banking service. This followed the Bank’s withdrawal from providing retail banking services to government departments and other corporate customers. Many customers have now moved to other banks and we expect the exercise to complete during 2017.”
Long-term customers were reportedly writing as many cheques to friends as possible in order to generate souvenirs of the threatened bank within the Bank.
