Pound climbs to its highest level since the Brexit referendum

The pound has risen to its highest overall level since the Brexit referendum, more than a decade ago, the BBC reported.

Bank of England figures show that sterling's trade-weighted index, which measures the pound against a basket of 18 major currencies, reached a joint-highest level since the June 2016 referendum this week. The index stood at 86.4, on a scale where 2005 equals 100. The Bank of England was expected to confirm the calculation on Thursday.

Against the dollar, the pound was up 0.13% at $1.3495 at 04:15 GMT on Thursday. Against the euro, it was 0.16% lower at €1.1979 at the same time. On Wednesday, Reuters reported that sterling had risen 0.63% against the dollar to $1.3495 by 10:22 GMT, its highest level since 15 September.

The move comes ahead of an interest rate decision. The Bank of England's nine-member Monetary Policy Committee, the group that sets Bank Rate, the main interest rate in the UK, was due to decide on Thursday. A rise would be the first in three years, and was widely expected.

The Bank of England explains that, typically, when Bank Rate goes up, the pound tends to strengthen. A stronger pound, it says, makes it cheaper to buy things from abroad.

The pound's recent path has not been steady. Reuters reported that sterling lost 2.2% in June 2026, its largest monthly fall since July 2025, when it dropped 3.8%. Earlier in the same month, Bloomberg reported that Goldman Sachs had described the pound as the most overvalued currency in the group of ten major developed economies, known as the G10. Bloomberg also reported that the pound had risen about 1.5% against the dollar since Britain formally left the European Union in 2020.