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If you are interested in European finance, we are targeting the interaction of the driving forces of politics and economics as they force the required changes in over-arching financial regulation - including ESG and Fin Tech. Details of these services are here

POLITICO: European Parliament approves Brexit deal : The European Parliament backed the Brexit deal agreed with the U.K. government, one of the last formal steps required to take Britain out of the European Union on January 31. View Article

EU signs Brexit deal

Brexit: withdrawal agreement signed by the EU : Presidents Charles Michel and Ursula von der Leyen signed the Agreement on the Withdrawal of the UK in Brussels. View Article

New Europe: Johnson’s Brexit bill becomes law : UK PM Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal has become law after Queen Elizabeth II gave her formal assent to the legislation. The royal assent opens the way for the UK to leave the EU on 31 January, after the EU parliament’s approval. View Article

POLITICO: Boris Johnson signs Brexit deal : UK PM says deal ‘brings to an end far too many years of argument and division.’ View Article

Department for Exiting the EU: UK and EEA EFTA states sign separation agreement : The UK, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein have signed the EEA EFTA Separation Agreement. This agreement largely mirrors the Withdrawal Agreement negotiated with the EU. View Article

The Guardian: EU to start talks with UK over future relationship on 3 March : Negotiations on the UK’s post-Brexit relationship with the EU will start on 3 March, more than a month after the UK’s departure from the bloc, the Guardian can reveal. View Article

The Guardian: Brexit secretary says UK will set out trade talk aims by early February : The UK will set out its negotiating aims for trade talks with the EU by early February and will not diverge from Brussels’ rules for the sake of it, Steve Barclay has said. View Article

Brexit Secretary Steve Barclay - The Guardian

The Guardian: Brexit talks: UK warned it faces tough challenge against 'team EU' : The European Union’s chief Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, and the Irish prime minister, Leo Varadkar, have warned that a united bloc – “team 27” – will give the UK a stark challenge in the next phase of Brexit negotiations. View Article

The Guardian: Calls for full access to EU markets without alignment 'absurd', says MEP : Any attempt by the British government to seek full access to European markets without alignment was “absurd” and would be voted down, one of Emmanuel Macron’s top allies in the European parliament has said. View Article

EurActiv: Even ‘bare bones’ EU-UK deal will be complex, tough to clinch: diplomats : Wrapping up even a “bare bones” deal on the future relationship between the European Union and Britain will be fraught with complexity and, with so little time to get it done, a painful “hard” Brexit on 31 December cannot be ruled out, diplomats said. View Article

Financial Times: EU seeks power to sanction UK over any breaches of Brexit deal : The EU will demand the right to rapidly sanction the UK for breaching any deal on a future relationship as it seeks to prevent “competitive undercutting or freeriding” by British companies after Brexit, according to an internal document seen by the FT. View Article

The Guardian: Barnier rejects Johnson's claims over Irish Sea trade checks : The EU has rejected Boris Johnson’s claims that there will be no checks on goods going from Great Britain to Northern Ireland after Brexit, with Michel Barnier warning such checks are not dispensable. View Article

The Independent: EU threatens Boris Johnson with 'sanctions' if he fails to implement controversial Irish sea goods checks : The EU has warned Boris Johnson of “sanctions” if he fails to implement controversial goods checks in the Irish Sea after Brexit, opening up a fresh potential clash with the UK. View Article

The Independent: Boris Johnson’s hopes of US trade deal rest on progress in EU talks, warns Mnuchin : The US has warned Boris Johnson that his hopes of a post-Brexit trade deal rest on first making progress in the already-troubled negotiations with the EU. View Article

The Independent: Brexit uncertainty could cost UK economy £15bn by end of decade, report finds : Continued uncertainty over Britain’s future trading relationship with the EU could cost the UK economy £4.4bn annually by the end of this year and £15bn by the end of the decade, a new report has warned. View Article

The City of London

Financial Times: Fear EU deal puts City of London at risk of ‘rule-taking’ : The system that would allow British financial firms to access the EU’s markets after Brexit could lead to “indirect rule-taking by the UK,” a City of London lobby group has warned. View Article

Financial Times: London loses top spot as global finance hub : London has surrendered its position as the world’s top financial centre to New York due in part to uncertainty over Brexit, according to a survey of senior financial services executives. View Article

Financial Times: UK and EU set for clash on fish and financial services : Ireland’s prime minister Leo Varadkar warned of a fish for financial services Brexit clash by suggesting that the City of London could lose access to European markets unless the UK opens up its coastal waters to EU boats. View Article

City AM: Watchdog tells financial firms to be ready in case of no-deal Brexit : Financial firms in the UK should be ready in case Britain does not reach a trade deal with the European Union by December, according to a senior regulator. View Article

Commercial Risk Europe: Difficult conditions for UK non-life insurers but most prepared for Brexit : UK non-life insurers have faced difficult market conditions in 2019, including strong competition and claims inflation, as well as political and economic uncertainty, according to AM Best, but most are well prepared for Brexit.  View Article

EurActiv: Business leaders urge UK to loosen rules on post-Brexit migration : UK business leaders have urged Boris Johnson’s government to loosen its planned rules for post-Brexit migration, notably by dropping the minimum income needed to live and work in the UK. View Article

The Guardian: Britain could lose access to EU data after series of scandals : British hopes of maintaining a post-Brexit flow of data with the EU, judged vital for security and the economy, have been thrown into doubt after a behind-the-scenes intervention from the Netherlands over Britain’s record in protecting personal information. View Article

LSE: Membership 2.0: what the UK rejoining the EU would involve : Anthony Salamone sets out how the UK would have to change and the demands the Union would make. Abandoning its opt-outs, the UK would have to start from scratch and accept being a more normal member state – and thus make its second EU membership much more positive and inclusive. View Article

 

Graham Bishop #FBPE retweeted
	Guy Verhofstadt @guyverhofstadt
#Brexit is a failure of the Union. There is a lesson to learn from it: to deeply reform the Union. To make it into a real Union, a Union without opt-in, without opt-outs, without rebates, without exceptions. Only then we can defend our interests and defend our values. pic.twitter.com/asW7C5YK7A
Graham Bishop #FBPE retweeted
	POLITICO Europe @POLITICOEurope
The European Parliament has officially approved the #Brexit deal politi.co/2RAwmn6
Graham Bishop #FBPE retweeted
	BBC Politics @BBCPolitics
Singing of Auld Lang Syne starts in the European Parliament as the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement is approved by MEPs bbc.in/37ELSUt pic.twitter.com/pTiLrW0Qlf
Graham Bishop #FBPE retweeted
LSE Brexit" src="https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/774177482110963716/IU4TjkuV_normal.jpg" />	LSE Brexit @lsebrexitvote
“The UK’s major concessions during its first EU membership – the budget rebate, opt-outs on the euro and Schengen, special justice and home affairs arrangements – would not be on offer.” blogs.lse.ac.uk/brexit/2020/01…
Graham Bishop #FBPE retweeted
	The Guardian @guardian
Brexit secretary says UK will set out trade talk aims by early February theguardian.com/politics/2020/…
Graham Bishop #FBPE retweeted
	Bloomberg Brexit @Brexit
U.K., European and American banks plan to ask the British government for as much as $5.2 billion annually in tax breaks post-Brexit trib.al/LwmQKfS
Graham Bishop #FBPE retweeted
	Law Society Gazette @lawsocgazette
UK should create one-stop-shop of financial services legislation to improve accessibility of law after Brexit, according to study by Linklaters and International Regulatory Strategy Group: lawgazette.co.uk/news/financial…
Graham Bishop #FBPE retweeted
	BBC Politics @BBCPolitics
Brexit: US 'wants to reach trade deal with UK this year' bbc.in/2Rq19mi
Graham Bishop #FBPE retweeted
FT Brussels" src="https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/931157406360449024/uendSDG1_normal.jpg" />	FT Brussels @ftbrussels
EU seeks power to sanction UK over any breaches of Brexit deal on.ft.com/2Roborv
Graham Bishop #FBPE retweeted
FT Brussels" src="https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/931157406360449024/uendSDG1_normal.jpg" />	FT Brussels @ftbrussels
Fear EU deal puts City of London at risk of ‘rule-taking’ on.ft.com/2GbX0MF