National Savings and Investments was founded in 1861 as the Post Office Savings Bank. The aim of the bank was to allow workers to save, and to provide the government will access to debt funding. The bank's name later changed to National Savings Bank, and later to National Savings and Investments.
NS&I manages around £66 billion in savings, 10% of the UK savings market. This accounts for 17% of the UK's national debt. As funds from NS&I are a relatively cheap source of government borrowing, the bank sets interest rates both to attract savers and provide low cost finance for the government.
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