As a result of its theoretical and empirical advantages, CBI was widely adopted (particularly in the 1990s) in major industrialised economies and beyond. The form of independence, however, varies between instrument (economic) and goal (political) independence (see Fischer, 1995).
Under the former, the operational goals of the central bank are exogenously determined, either by legislation or by another official body such as the finance ministry. Under instrument independence, the central bank is free to choose without external interference the means (the policy instruments) best suited to meet its given goals: the Bank of England is an example of this form of independence.