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[...] Asked whether Europe would follow the US in weakening financial regulations, Dombrovskis says: "I think this was one of the lessons from the crisis: that we need international, financial regulatory architecture to ensure financial stability. From the EU side, we’re committed to work towards ensuring that there is a functioning international financial regulatory architecture. And certainly we are not looking towards deregulation. And this is a signal we are sending to our US partners in this area."
He's got the UK in his hands
[...] “Equivalence is certainly one of the options we are looking at,” he says. “Another is of course also for industry to establish a substantial enough presence in the EU to maintain the EU passporting. So there are different avenues which can be explored.” [...]
The European Commission is working with the European Central Bank to assess what Brexit means for clearing. “There are several factors at play,” Dombrovskis says. “One is financial stability. There are questions related to the enforceability of swap lines between ECB and Bank of England if the UK is to move out of the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice.
“And there is also a question of functioning of financial markets, basically of avoiding fragmentation of the financial markets. It’s a complex issue which we’ll need to assess.” [...]
“We must work towards a solution which eventually works for all,” he says, striking a notably diplomatic tone.
“Our aim certainly is not to punish the UK,” he adds. “We have to respect the choice of British voters, and as I said we will certainly the enter the negotiations with the aim to reach agreement which feeds all: which feeds EU 27 and feeds the UK.”
On the issue of passportings rights, he says: “Of course there will be implications on how business will be done with the EU because there is still the process of equivalence, establishing sufficient presence in the EU to actually get the EU passports. But certainly one can expect the City continuing to be a substantial financial centre.”