If 2020 marked a year of crisis fighting for central banks, 2021 was the year in which institutions around the world began to come to terms with the longer-run effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Towards the start of the year, most central banks were in full easing mode, as economies struggled to recover from the shock of the pandemic. The European Central Bank stepped up its asset purchases, the Bank of England told markets to prepare for negative rates and the Federal Reserve kept buying bonds