Next Generation Technology Reseller Arrangements

The Bank of England is considering its future approach to procuring technology products and associated services following the expiry of its current technology Value Added Reseller (VAR) framework.

At this stage, the Bank has not made a final decision on the structure of any future procurement and is undertaking preliminary market engagement to help inform its thinking, procurement strategy and framework design.

Whilst one option is a like-for-like replacement of the existing arrangement, the Bank's initial view is that the future model may comprise multiple frameworks rather than a single framework. In particular, the Bank is considering a dedicated framework focussed on Cyber & Emerging Technology, alongside one or more additional frameworks covering other areas of technology spend.

The categories currently being considered are:

Cyber & Emerging Technology

Software & Platforms

Hardware, End User Computing (EUC) & Connectivity

Enterprise Applications, Cloud Hosting & Infrastructure

The purpose of this engagement is to obtain market feedback on areas including:

Framework structure and lotting strategy

The advantages and disadvantages of single versus multiple framework arrangements

Supplier capability and capacity across the proposed categories

Commercial and pricing models

Routes to market for emerging technologies

Innovation and market developments

Supplier onboarding, framework governance and competition models

The Bank welcomes input from suppliers operating in one or more of the proposed categories and intends to use the feedback received to inform its future procurement strategy, framework design and any subsequent procurement activity.

This Preliminary Market Engagement exercise does not constitute a call for competition and will not result in the award of any contract. The Bank reserves the right to amend the scope, structure, lotting approach and procurement strategy of any future procurement following completion of the engagement process.