bank rate
1
4.6
- noun
- Specialized
- Fed bank rate cuts and the ensuing frenzy on Wall St. helped bolster the false notion that their philosophy had resulted in prosperity on Main St.
Examples
-
The types of investments offered by 529 savings plans are limited and tend toward the conservative, but they also offer a much more favorable return than bank rates in most cases.
Blog text (17) -
If bank, if bank rates increase, you come out ahead, the deal stays fair or I come out ahead.
-
The bank rate has been adjusted to stimulate economic growth, now set at 1.5%.
-
Many economists predict that the bank rate will rise in response to inflation.
-
A decrease in the bank rate may lead to lower borrowing costs for consumers.
Synonyms
330
2.3
The extra money you pay when you borrow or receive when you save each year
6
3.2
Percent a bank charges for borrowing money each year
4
4.9
Interest rate a central bank charges banks for borrowing money
3
5.5
A key interest rate set by the Bank of England that other loan rates follow
How High
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase is compositionally built from 'bank' + 'rate', so a B1 learner who knows both words can infer it refers to some kind of rate associated with a bank and will grasp the general idea. However, the specific technical meaning — the central bank's policy lending/interest rate used to influence money supply — is specialized and not fully predictable from the constituents alone, so full understanding requires domain knowledge.
Etymology
Bank rate comes from the idea that a country's main bank sets the rate, the 'price' it charges when it lends money to other banks, like a shop's price tag. That's why bank rate means the official 'interest' level that affects borrowing costs.