10 February 2019

Bloomberg: British and US banks are deeply divided on Brexit ties

British lenders and their Wall Street rivals are pushing widely different views on Brexit, a clash that was highlighted at a meeting last week with UK government officials, people with knowledge of the situation said.

While U.S. banks want Britain to maintain the closest possible ties with the EU after Brexit, U.K. banks and insurers are anxious they don’t become beholden to new laws made by Brussels, two of the people said.

Representatives from eight finance and insurance trade groups met on Tuesday with the Economic Secretary to the Treasury John Glen, who is working on the government’s “global financial partnership” strategy that seeks to boost London’s ties with financial trading hubs after Brexit.

The plan is expected to be announced by the Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond after next month’s update on public finances, according to another person familiar with the matter. [...]

Under the Norway-style Brexit deal that some politicians are advocating, the U.K. would be subject to a number of rules, such as the General Data Protection Regulations that cover companies holding EU residents’ personal data. British banks would be required to adhere to any changes in the rules even though U.K. politicians would no longer have a say in how they evolved.

However, many U.S. banks are unfazed by the Norway model in which the U.K. would remain in the European Economic Area free-trade zone, because they already essentially see themselves as rule-takers, the people said.

[...]

Full article on Bloomberg

© Bloomberg