Bank of America likely to locate in Dublin post-Brexit

Bank of America views Dublin as its default destination for a new hub inside the European Union if Brexit means the United Kingdom loses easy access to the single market, according to one of the US firm's top executives in Germany.

The bank will likely move some jobs to other cities across the EU, including Frankfurt, Madrid, Luxembourg and Amsterdam, Nikolaus Naerger said at a press briefing hosted by the Association of Foreign Banks in Germany Tuesday.

The firm hasn’t made a final decision on Dublin and could choose a different destination, said Mr Naerger, Bank of America’s head of corporate banking in Germany, Switzerland and Austria.

Clarity

“We will look very carefully who can be the EU passporting entity in future,” but will make the decision on a hub once there is more clarity on where Brexit negotiations are headed, Mr Naerger said. Passporting is the right of banks in one EU country to provide services to the rest of the bloc.

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Banks, bracing for the worst, are set to start the process of moving operations into the EU within weeks of prime minister Theresa May triggering Brexit talks, which is scheduled to happen by the end of the month.

Favoured destinations

Dublin and Frankfurt are emerging as the favoured destinations for financial services firms preparing to move jobs from London.

Bank of America already has a fully licensed operation in Dublin, hence why it is the default option, Mr Naerger said. The bank will still maintain a large presence in London, he said.

“Dublin is an emergency, a default option that the bank has,” he said.

– (Bloomberg)