British bank eyed over ‘missing’ $67B

While the economic turmoil wrought by the coronavirus pandemic has left some people in Britain counting every penny, the country’s central bank is apparently having trouble keeping track of billions of dollars.

A parliamentary report released Friday said about $67 billion, or 50 billion pounds, in paper money is “missing” from the country’s cash supply and that the Bank of England “seems to lack curiosity” about where it’s gone.

Of the more than 70 billion pounds’ worth of bills in circulation in Britain, the report found that only about a quarter was being spent in stores and on other purchases. That leaves the majority of those bills — which by design are not traceable — unaccounted for.

The 50 billion pounds may be hidden away in unreported household savings, squirreled away for a rainy day or being used for more nefarious purposes, Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee said in the report, calling on the Bank of England to investigate.

“Fifty billion pounds of sterling notes — or about three-quarters of this precious and dwindling supply — is stashed somewhere, but the Bank of England doesn’t know where, who by or what for — and doesn’t seem very curious,” said Meg Hillier, a lawmaker and the chair of the committee.

The Bank of England hit back at the suggestion that it was taking a laissez faire approach to the issue.

“It is the responsibility of the Bank of England to meet public demand for bank notes. The bank has always met that demand and will continue to do so,” a spokeswoman from the bank said in a statement Friday.

“Members of the public do not have to explain to the bank why they wish to hold bank notes. This means that bank notes are not missing,” the statement said.

The pandemic has led to a slump in cash payments, but demand for bills has risen in recent years, and the pandemic has accelerated that trend, the report said. The value of paper (and polymer) bills in circulation in Britain hit a record high in July of 76.5 billion pounds.