|
|
The exodus is likely to be replicated across the Square Mile as investment banks, almost all of which are foreign-owned, put in place emergency measures to cope with a period of uncertainty that could stretch through to summer, depending on the outcome of votes in parliament this week.
About 400 JP Morgan bankers are ready for last-minute moves to rival financial hubs including Frankfurt, Luxembourg and Dublin as part of preparations for a no-deal Brexit, a source told the Guardian. It is part of the bank’s plans to shift staff “as late as possible” to avoid any unnecessary disruptions.
While Thursday’s parliamentary vote in favour of an extension to article 50 has not affected the existing relocation plans – given that an extension still requires EU approval – JP Morgan is understood to be watching developments carefully. In the meantime, affected staff, who primarily work across sales and trading, are “clear that they’re on standby”.
Goldman Sachs has a couple of dozen trading desk staff ready to be shifted overnight, a separate source confirmed. The US investment bank employs about 6,000 people in the UK, while as many as 700 could be relocated in the event of no deal. It is understood about 150 have moved to other offices in the EU so far, most of them EU27 nationals.
JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs declined to comment.
JP Morgan employees are also bound for Paris, Madrid and Milan. The bank, which employs about 16,000 people in the UK, recently opened a new office in Dublin, which has the capacity to host double its existing Irish workforce of 530. [...]