The Bank of England broke new ground on Friday, in fact - it became the first central bank in the world to answer questions through Twitter. Jennifer Rankin at The Guardian says it perfectly:

"When Britain's first modern central banker was at the helm of the Bank of England between 1920 and 1944, tweeting was strictly for the birds."

But not anymore, using the hashtag #AskBoE, the Bank of England answered people's questions about monetary policy. Business insider summarised some of the key questions being asked. Timing here was perfect - just a day after British Gas had a total Twitter meltdown, and that's an understatement.

Answers to questions were sensible, smart and most importantly sometimes included a little hint of good British humour. As one user explained, it might not have been as fun as the #AskBG Twitter chat, but it certainly was more informative.

Since launching its Twitter account mid-2011 The Bank of England has gained 47,100 followers - setting a precedent for other central banks to follow. A full summary of the hour-long Q&A can be found on The BBC Business pages.