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The literature on the Bank Act of 1844 commonly adopts the interpretation that it would have been a crucial step in the construction of central banking in Britain and the analytical framework that opposes rules and discretion. Through the examination of the monetary writings of the period and the interest rate policy of the Bank of England, and also through the systematic analysis of the financial aspect of the Act of 1844, the paper shows that such an interpretation remains fragile. Hence the present paper rests on the articulation between the monetary history and the history of economic analysis and also on the institutional approach of money and banking so as to assess the consequences of the Act of 1844 on the liquidity market and the relations between the central bank and finance. Classification JEL : B12, E58, N13.