Bank of England doubles Champagne spend

The Bank of England nearly doubled its spend on wine and Champagne last year, new figures have revealed.

As reported by The Telegraph, the Bank of England splashed out £7,990 on 756 bottles of wine and Champagne in 2013, up from 444 bottles totaling £4,126 in 2012.

The bank’s 2010 spend meanwhile, was even lower, at £3,509, figures published last Friday under the Freedom of Information Act revealed.

With the British economy slowly cranks back into gear, much of last year’s fizz spend went towards leaving parties, such as one held for the bank’s outgoing governor, Mervyn King.

The Telegraph reports that a series of dinners were held to mark the departure of Lord King and former deputy governor Paul Tucker at a cost of over £20,000.

“The Bank of England hosts a number of business-related receptions each year.

“The Bank provides refreshments at such events, and this involves purchasing beverages, including wine, for current and future use, taking advantage of bulk cost savings where possible,” a spokesperson from the Bank of England told the paper.

Lord King’s successor, Mark Carney, appears to be holding back on booze, with the bank confirming that no purchases of wine or Champagne had taken place thus far in 2014.

At one point in its history, the Bank of England had the second largest wine cellar in the City of London, second only to the London Stock Exchange.