BoE 'could hold rates' in wake of Credit Suisse and SVB

50/50 chance of BoE hike

The Bank of England may use the recent failures of Credit Suisse and Silicon Valley Bank to temporarily curb its interest rate hiking while the dust settles, according to some market watchers ahead of a decision on Thursday (23 March).

The market is pricing a 50/50 chance of a 25bps hike by the BoE, after a fraught week for the financial services sector. With the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, real weaknesses emerging at First Republic Bank and then the dramatic takeover by UBS of Credit Suisse, long-brewing troubles blew up into a big loss of confidence for markets. The turmoil wrought by Credit Suisse and SVB has raised questions over future rate hikes from central banks in the EU, Britain and the US, ultimately restricting credit growth to slow demand, and some say this may absolve the need for more central ban...