The Bank of England has increased its technology support services budget by £26.7 million, bringing the total to £86.7 million, as part of a broader strategy to modernize its data infrastructure
and cloud capabilities.
The move represents a 45% increase in the maximum cost of its support services framework and follows the central bank's revised data and analytics strategy. The expansion includes additional funding for complex SAP configurations—particularly Business Warehouse—as well as support for interoperability across multiple cloud platforms and between cloud and on-premises data centers.
Originally awarded in September 2023 with a £60 million cap, the framework has now been amended via a non-competitive extension to accommodate ongoing and emerging project needs. An official tender notice stated that the value increase was “required to cover continued costs of existing projects.”
Focus on cloud, interoperability, and SAP
When the Bank initiated the procurement process in 2023, it sought suppliers with strong SAP expertise, particularly in Business Warehouse, to support its highly customized IT estate. It also emphasized the need for service providers who could manage multi-cloud environments, cloud cost optimization (including FinOps and license management), and integration across various data centers.
The scope of work spans nine service areas, covering enterprise systems like ERP, Microsoft 365, and Dynamics 365. The Bank expressed interest in shifting toward more outcome-based service models. Vendors are also expected to provide support for data science, architecture, engineering, and strategy.
Accenture, Infosys, Telstra, and Civica were appointed to the framework. Separately, the Bank also expanded an £8.7 million contract with Version 1 in 2022 to modernize its finance, procurement, and recruitment operations using Oracle Cloud—this deal was increased by over £4 million earlier in 2025.
Strategic shift toward cloud and AI
In 2022, the Bank's data infrastructure was still reliant on an on-premises stack, including a Hadoop data lake and SQL warehouse. Tools in use included Microsoft Excel, R, Python, Git, and Tableau.
However, in its 2024 annual report, Bank Chair David Roberts highlighted the rollout of new data and technology strategies that are expected to significantly transform the institution’s operations. The revised approach stems in part from an October 2023 review by the Independent Evaluation Office (IEO), which called for more robust modernization efforts.
As part of its updated strategy, the Bank piloted migration of some analytics services to the cloud, which increased system capacity and laid groundwork for broader cloud adoption. The Bank has since formalized a cloud strategy to guide its ongoing modernization efforts, including exploration of artificial intelligence applications.
"This has increased capacity, enabling more users and projects to use the service… and paved the way for work to explore how artificial intelligence (AI) could contribute to our work in the future," the Bank noted in its report.
Founded in 1694, the Bank of England has evolved into a central pillar of the UK’s financial system. Today, its transformation continues as it looks to technology to enhance operational efficiency and policy impact in a rapidly changing digital economy. Photo by Katie Chan, Wikimedia commons.i
