Bank of England sets Q3 2026 APF gilt sale schedule

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BoE Q3 2026 gilt sale schedule

Highlights

Bank of England will sell APF-held gilts in Q3 2026 via three short-maturity auctions of £725 million each and two medium-maturity auctions of £600 million each.
September 2025 MPC meeting set a £70 billion reduction target in APF gilts from October 2025 to September 2026, taking the total to £488 billion.
Q3 2026 gilt auctions will run from 20 July to mid-September 2026, with operational parameters unchanged and Q4 2026 plans announced after the 17 September 2026 MPC meeting.

Q3 auction plan and policy framework

As reported by the Bank of England, the market notice details the schedule for Q3 2026 sales of gilts held in the Asset Purchase Facility for monetary policy purposes.

At its September 2025 meeting, the Monetary Policy Committee voted to reduce the stock of gilts held in the APF by £70 billion over the period from October 2025 to September 2026, taking the total to £488 billion. The Bank says it had already set out in a consolidated market notice published on 1 September 2022 that it would release a quarterly sales schedule for these holdings.

The latest notice covers the period from 20 July 2026 to the week commencing 14 September 2026. Under the framework outlined in a 15 December 2023 market notice, the Bank says it schedules auctions to reduce the APF gilt stock as evenly as possible across maturity sectors, measured in initial proceeds terms.

Market implications and next steps

For Q3 2026, the Bank says it will sell short-maturity bonds through three auctions of £725 million and medium-maturity bonds through two auctions of £600 million. The maturity buckets are defined as gilts with residual maturities of 3 to 7 years for short, 7 to 20 years for medium, and more than 20 years for long.

Operational parameters and participation requirements from earlier notices remain in force except where this notice amends them. The Bank says any schedule for Q4 2026 or later is expected to be communicated after the MPC's annual review of gilt stock reduction, which is due alongside the committee's meeting on 17 September 2026.

Our earlier report on Andy Burnham’s Makerfield by-election result covered how it stirred investor anxiety about the direction of UK economic policy and its implications for fiscal credibility. We noted an unusual mix of higher real UK gilt yields and a weaker pound, drawing attention to lingering sensitivity after the 2022 mini-budget episode and the importance of maintaining market confidence in government borrowing plans.

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