Meet the Bank of England boss spearheading organisation's 500-person expansion into Leeds

The commitment being made to Leeds by the Bank is considerable – having 500 staff in the city will equate to around 10 per cent of its total workforce and advanced talks are taking place about a move from its current in Yorkshire House to a larger premises.

The man who has been chosen to spearhead the move is Sebastian Walsh, who will combine his new role as Head of Leeds with his current responsibilities as the Secretary of the Bank.

Meeting The Yorkshire Post at the Bank of England’s current base where young and casually-dressed workers are beavering away at their desks, Walsh explains that Leeds – which is already the UK’s second largest city for financial services – was a natural choice for the organisation’s expansion outside of London.

"This is a really strong growing financial centre in the UK and some of the attraction for some firms here is similar to us which is that quality of skills here in Yorkshire,” he says.

"Leeds also has really strong transport connections and some brilliant universities and that is a huge attraction. We are the central bank and we need to have a bigger presence outside of the south-east and London and be present where we serve.

"It is a way of drawing in different talent. There is no reason why everyone working for the Bank of England must move to the south-east. There’s real deep pockets of expertise here with things like data.

“As policymakers, we are all impacted by our own experience and how we see the world. As we move to scale and have 500 people here, you’ll get different perspectives in policymaking process. I think that is a huge thing.”

Walsh has also committed to move to Yorkshire with his wife and two young sons and is currently house-hunting. "While there is this really professionally exciting thing to do building this presence in Leeds, it is also for me personally exciting that once we have moved here my family will be spending our weekends out on the Yorkshire Dales, North York Moors and in the beautiful countryside.

"Any decision like this is a family decision. I was excited by the opportunity but I spoke to my wife and her view was decisive. She is a musician and Leeds has this really vibrant music scene and there are a whole bunch of really exciting opportunities where she can get involved.

"Happily I have been in Yorkshire for many summers in my life. I feel I have to be here as a permanent fixture to basically absorb what I’m describing and what I want this office to drive through the Bank as well, which is a perspective from the North of England.”

The move represents the next stage of Walsh’s career at the Bank, which has involved an impressive rise through the ranks.

The former BBC and Dow Jones journalist was initially recruited to support the Bank’s Parliamentary engagement after the financial crisis before moving across to its press office working on issues such as the move from paper banknotes to polymer.

Walsh became then-Governor Mark Carney’s press secretary shortly after the Brexit referendum result. Mr Carney had caused controversy in the run-up to the vote by warning leaving the EU could cause recession. After the value of the pound initially plunged against the dollar and euro following the surprise result, the then-Governor sought to provide reassurance that the country was well-prepared and economic and financial stability could continue.

Walsh reflects: "What Mark did was outline the Bank’s judgement, as he was required to, around some of the core financial stability risks around aspects of that time. You will see a degree of volatility in financial markets as with any unexpected event like Covid-19. The Bank always has a role in addressing those kinds of issues. It was a time when the Bank was under intense scrutiny, which is right and proper as it has quite substantial powers.

"It was an important time for us to articulate, both for Parliament and the public, our judgement around how the economy was developing during that period. It was an interesting time for me to be part of helping Mark tell that story.”

He continued in the same role for new governor Andrew Bailey when Mark Carney left in March 2022. Mr Bailey had something of a baptism of fire as his arrival coincided almost immediately with the first Covid lockdown.

Walsh recalls: "I started the week beginning a planned programme of press and introductory interviews but by the end of the week I couldn’t have any journalists in the Bank. We were issuing extraordinary communications on monetary policy at one point through a conference call with the assembled UK and economic press.

"It was a period of intense uncertainty and markets were tumbling. In this country people do look to the Bank of England as an emblem of stability and reassurance in those moments.”

He took up a new post as Secretary of the Bank in May 2022, responsible for issues such as governance, ethics and ensuring the organisation operates well.

"I basically run the decision-making apparatus and ensure the right people are meeting to make the right decision on any given issue.

"In the press office it was a matter of explaining the Bank to the world. My focus as secretary became more about the organisation and driving change. One of which we felt we needed to do was build our presence in Leeds.

"What was announced some months ago was to get this office up to a minimum of 500 people by 2027 and also second to that, ensure it reflects a cross-section of the Bank as a whole. It means seeing economists here, bank regulators, technology experts, data scientists. This is not some sort of outpost – this is us doing core central banking here in Leeds and Yorkshire.”

He says several heads of division will be moving to Leeds as part of the expansion into the city.

"The single most important piece of success will be looking at an office of real scale – 500-plus people representing a cross-section of what the Bank does. I’m so excited to see people we have recruited in the early days starting to make progression in their careers and becoming senior management in Leeds and staying in Leeds.

"This is a permanent commitment to Leeds, we are going to grow and be here indefinitely.”