07 May 2019

Financial Times: Wealthy UK investors optimistic on Brexit impact, survey shows

41% of high net worth investors in the UK believe Brexit will have a positive impact, according to a survey by UBS Global Wealth Management, compared with 35% who think it will be negative.

This positive outlook was mirrored among business owners, 44 per cent of whom said Brexit would have a positive effect on their business. A further 28 per cent predicted no impact at all.

“Between multiple meaningful votes in Parliament and pivotal European Council summits, it has been a challenging quarter for our clients, who are looking to minimise the impact of domestic political and market factors on their investments and businesses,” said Mark Goddard at UBS Global Wealth Management.

“Despite this, this survey shows that UK investors and business owners have a much more positive mindset than towards the end of 2018. Investors have managed to set aside concerns over prolonged uncertainty when assessing their financial objectives and economic outlook.”

The question on Brexit optimism had not been posed by UBS previously, so an exact change in sentiment cannot be measured. However, the number of investors who identified the domestic political environment as their biggest worry fell from 55 per cent in the last quarter of 2018 to 43 per cent in the first quarter of 2019, indicating increasing positivity.

The survey canvassed the views of 3,653 investors and business owners with at least $1m in investable assets or at least $250,000 in annual revenues, respectively.

Full article on Financial Times (subscription required)

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