Concerned that the UK is distancing itself from the European Union, a few big US banking groups are reportedly considering moving some of their London business activities to Ireland, according to the Financial Times. American banks, specifically Bank of America, Citigroup and Morgan Stanley, are said to be preparing for the imminent formation of the eurozone’s banking union that could further isolate the UK sector and make it difficult for foreign banks based in London, for example, to move freely within the EU.
“I don’t think people are making enough of it – a lot of passported activities that cannot take place in London will not exist here any more,” one US banking exec told the FT. There are more than 250 foreign banks operating in the UK financial sector, which, according to TheCityUK, brought in $71bn, a third of which came from EU business dealings.
