<Tr> <Th> Website </Th> <Td> www.bankofengland.co.uk </Td> </Tr> <P> The Bank of England, formally the Governor and Company of the Bank of England, is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model on which most modern central banks have been based . Established in 1694, it is the second oldest central bank in operation today, after the Sveriges Riksbank . The Bank of England is the world's 8th oldest bank . It was established to act as the English Government's banker and is still one of the bankers for the Government of the United Kingdom . The Bank was privately owned by stockholders from its foundation in 1694 until it was nationalised in 1946 . </P> <P> In 1998, it became an independent public organisation, wholly owned by the Treasury Solicitor on behalf of the government, with independence in setting monetary policy . </P> <P> The Bank is one of eight banks authorised to issue banknotes in the United Kingdom, but it has a monopoly on the issue of banknotes in England and Wales and regulates the issue of banknotes by commercial banks in Scotland and Northern Ireland . </P>

When did the bank of england become independent