The Bank of England extended secret emergency financing to Royal Bank of Scotland and to what was then HBOS during the banking panic last October, indicating the two banks were even closer to collapse than had been thought.
For a world first, the announcement came with remarkably little fanfare.
The Bank of England announced plans Thursday to pump another £50 billion ($84 billion) into the UK economy in a fresh effort to steer the country out of a recession which it admitted had been "deeper than previously thought."
The Bank of England left its base interest rate unchanged Thursday, keeping it at a record low of 0.5 percent.
Visions of apocalypse -- financial and environmental -- hung over London on Wednesday, as protesters gathered in the streets of the city's financial district on the eve of the G-20 summit of world leaders.
Protesters smash the windows of a Royal Bank of Scotland branch in London's financial district.
Police and protesters skirmished around the Bank of England on Wednesday as world leaders gathered for the G-20 summit.
A broad variety of protest groups stormed the streets of London ahead of the G-20.
London prepared on Wednesday for what police warned could be "unprecedented" mass protests by anti-capitalist and climate change campaigners ahead of Thursday's G-20 economic summit.
Authorities were investigating a suspicious package that was found Tuesday in the vicinity of the Bank of England, just two days before world leaders meet in London at the G-20 Summit.
CNN's Paula Newton reports from London, where a suspect package was found outside the Bank of England.
The Bank of England bought £2 billion ($2.8 billion) of government bonds Wednesday as the UK introduced quantitative easing to kickstart the ailing economy.
The UK government has announced plans to introduce "quantitative easing" to help the economy.
CNN's Richard Quest talks with Russell Jones about the decision by central banks in Europe to lower interest rates further.
The European Central Bank and the Bank of England both cut their key interest rates to historic lows on Thursday in a bid to revive their ailing economies.
The dollar rose against the euro and lost ground against the pound Thursday after the European Central Bank held interest rates steady and the Bank of England cut its key rate by half a percentage point.
The Bank of England reduced interest rates by 0.5 percentage points Thursday to 1 percent, the lowest-ever level.
The dollar lost ground against major currencies Tuesday as Wall Street stayed calm ahead of two central bank monetary-policy decisions.
The Bank of England has cut the interest rate to its lowest-ever level, the bank announced Thursday, slashing it to 1.5%.
Three European central banks slashed key interest rates Thursday in attempts to stem the recession.
The dollar soared to a 6-year high against the British pound Wednesday on concern that the Bank of England may make aggressive cuts to a key interest rate to combat a deepening recession.
The dollar rose against the euro and the pound Thursday after monetary policy makers in Europe cut interest rates in response to growing economic weakness.
Recession fears and worries about corporate profits swept stock markets around the world Thursday, but European indexes partly recovered after the Bank of England and European Central Bank slashed lending rates.
Global stock indexes were mostly higher Tuesday as lending rates continued to improve and the two-year race for the White House neared an end.
Europe's stock markets opened modestly higher after solid gains in Asia and amid mounting expectations that the European Central Bank and the Bank of England will aggressively cut borrowing costs
CNN's John Defterios host of Marketplace Middle East explains why Mideast markets are down.
The Bank of England will introduce new emergency overnight borrowing facilities for banks starting Monday and tighten disclosure rules as it attempts to improve access to liquidity and remove the stigma attached to borrowing from the central bank
Asian and Pacific markets were relatively stable Thursday -- a day after major indices declined sharply on fears of the world financial crisis.
Brian Todd looks at the psychology of fear, and how it's wreaking havoc on the financial markets.
Global markets turned sharply lower Wednesday, despite emergency action by global central banks that had initially calmed skittish investors.
Banks and other lenders in Britain plan further cuts in lending to households and businesses over the next three months, the Bank of England said Thursday.
Banks and other lenders in Britain plan further cuts in lending to households and businesses over the next three months, the Bank of England said Thursday.
The Federal Reserve Bank announced a deal with four nations Wednesday meant to help global financial markets.
The Federal Reserve and five other central banks around the globe announced joint efforts early Thursday to try to pump an additional $180 billion into the battered global financial system.
The European Central Bank and the Bank of England left their key interest rates unchanged, reluctant to move them lower as rising prices offset the fear of weaker growth and recession
The Bank of England leaves interest rates unchanged as new figures show a bleak economy. ITN's James Blake reports.
The European Central Bank and the Bank of England both left their benchmark interest rates unchanged Thursday as they ponder how best to steer their economies between the shoals of mounting inflation and slowing growth
The dollar hit a seven-month high against the yen Wednesday and gained against the euro after the Federal Reserve eased some concerns about the U.S. economy.
The Bank of England announced a $100 billion plan to allow banks to swap mortgage-backed securities for Treasury bills
Don't expect the European Central Bank to cut interest rates any time soon, explains CNN's Todd Benjamin.
CNN's Sasha Herriman looks at how the U.S. subprime mortgage crisis is affecting interest rates in the United Kingdom.
British retailer Marks & Spencer says it experienced flagging sales in the run-up to Christmas and issued a gloomy outlook for 2008, sending its share price plunging by a fifth.
Just weeks after the Federal Reserve made a bold strike at the credit crisis, central bank chiefs in Europe are being put to the test.
The Bank of England has lent about £3 billion ($6 billion) to troubled British mortgage lender Northern Rock, a newspaper reported Saturday.
The Bank of England will inject funds into the longer-term money market, it said, marking a major U-turn in its policy on bailing out struggling banks and fueling accusations that British authorities have mishandled the credit crisis.
The Bank of England has taken the unusual move of bailing out a key mortgage lender, as the global credit crunch threatened to claim its latest victim, sending European markets reeling.
When England's century-old Northern Counties Permanent Building Society merged with the Rock Building Society to become Northern Rock in 1965, it's hard to imagine it was too troubled by the health of the U.S. mortgage sector. But times change. The tight squeeze in the global credit markets has struck another financial institution, and forced another central bank to intervene.
The Bank of England held official interest rates steady at 5.75 percent Thursday, as widely anticipated following weeks of jitters in global markets.
Barclays PLC has tapped the Bank of England for an emergency loan for the second time this month, borrowing $3.2 billion after a failure in a trading system, according to a person familiar with the transaction.
CNNMoney: Market talk
updated: Thu Aug 30 2007 23:41:00
Market talk
The Bank of England raised interest rates by a quarter percentage point to a six-year high of 5.75 percent Thursday - the fifth increase since last August - as risks to inflation are still on the upside.
CNNMoney: Stocks try to riseupdated: Thu Apr 05 2007 11:23:00
Stocks crept higher early Thursday afternoon as investors welcomed falling oil prices, but showed restraint ahead of Friday's March jobs report and a long holiday weekend.
CNNMoney: Techs lead advanceupdated: Thu Jan 11 2007 09:27:00
A rising technology tech sector continued to fuel a stock market advance Thursday, as investors shrugged off rising bond yields and a surprise interest rate hike from the Bank of England.
British homeowners faced a fifth hike in interest rates since November as the Bank of England took further action to keep inflation in check.
The Bank of England is being taken to court in a dispute over the 1991 collapse of the Bank of Credit and Commerce International (BCCI).
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