Conclusion 7

To secure the anticipated benefits from the new system, the Bank must make good on its plans for maintenance and further enhancement of the RTGS. Delivering long-term value from the new RTGS depends on the Bank’s ability to sustain and adapt the system as the payment landscape evolves. To maintain security, the Bank operates, maintains and updates the new RTGS in-house and also owns the intellectual property for the system design. It adopted a new target operating model, creating joint teams of payments and technical specialists, building internal technical expertise and establishing teams responsible for system oversight and managing change. As a result, estimated annual running costs have increased from £21 million to £41 million, with ongoing improvement built into business-as- usual funding. Since the new RTGS was launched in April 2025, the Bank has implemented more than 1,000 improvements, demonstrating the system’s flexibility. Knowledge and experience transfer formed an important part of the programme, with the last Accenture staff completing their work as planned shortly before we took evidence in March. The Bank is now working closely with industry to deliver three priority enhancements: extended operating hours; synchronisation (which enables coordination between the transfer of RTGS funds with the exchange of assets on other systems); and development of an alternative payment messaging network. 4 Recommendations