Governor of the Bank of England
On 3 June 2019, it was reported in The Times that Bailey was the favourite to replace Mark Carney as the new governor of the Bank of England. According to The Economist: "He is widely seen within the bank as a safe pair of hands, an experienced technocrat who knows how to manage an organisation." On 20 December 2019, it was officially announced by the Chancellor Sajid Javid that Bailey would take over as governor on 16 March 2020.
In 2021, Bailey objected to the title of a report by the House of Lords' Economic Affairs Committee, "Quantitative easing: a dangerous addiction?", saying "[Addiction] is a word that has a very damaging and particular meaning to many people who are suffering. I think it is wrong to use that word loosely, and frankly I think it was a very poor choice of language".
In February 2022, Bailey faced criticism from union leaders over his comments asking workers not to demand a pay rise, in the context of the cost-of-living crisis. When pressed by parliamentarians as to Bailey's salary, he replied with an approximate figure of £500,000, stating "I can't tell you exactly what it is, I don't carry that around in my head".
In May 2022, Bailey stated that the possibility of more rises in food prices was a "major worry" for the UK and other countries. He said the Russian invasion of Ukraine was affecting food supplies.
Following the "mini-budget", Bailey said that the BoE "will not hesitate" to raise interest rates if needed to meet its 2% inflation target, and that it was watching financial markets "very closely" following sharp moves in asset prices.
In 2025, responding to Rachel Reeves's proposal to ease regulation to spur UK growth, Bailey warned against weakening regulations, insisting there is "no trade-off" between growth and financial stability, warning not to forget about the pain of the 2008 financial crisis.
In 2025, following the introduction of an internship program at the Bank of England which explicitly excluded the white majority; the member of Parliament Rupert Lowe recommended the bank not exclude white applicants from the internship. This has led to suggestions that Bailey is politicising the bank and behaving in a biased manner.
In April 2025, Bailey was appointed the next chair of the Financial Stability Board.
In August 2026, Bailey sent a two-page letter to G20 finance ministers and central bank governors, warning that "frontier AI models" pose an immediate threat to the global financial system.
Bailey's term as governor is due to end on 15 March 2028.
