 | This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (February 2010) |
Gilt-edged securities, also referred to as gilts, are bonds issued by the UK Government. The term is of British origin, and then referred to the debt securities issued by the Bank of England on behalf of His Majesty's Treasury, whose paper certificates had a gilt (or gilded) edge, hence the name.
In 2002, the data collected by the British Office for National Statistics revealed that about two-thirds of all UK gilts are held by insurance companies and pension funds.[1] Since 2009 large quantities of gilts have been created and repurchased by the Bank of England under its policy of quantitative easing, and in recent years overseas investors have also been attracted to gilts by their "safe haven" status.
- ^ OECD public debt markets: trend and recent structural changes. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. 11 June 2002. ISBN 92-64-19761-3.