In the latest sign that financial institutions are stepping up their post-Brexit plans, Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BAML) has announced it is relocating three of its most senior London-based bankers to Paris.

Preparing for the loss of ‘passporting rights’

In a statement to staff, the bank said the moves would take place next year and formed part of BAML’s reorganisation to ensure it could provide its EU27 clients with a “seamless” service after Brexit.Unless the British government and Brussels can reach an agreement on new banking arrangements before next March, the UK will lose the ‘passporting rights’ that currently enable London-based institutions to operate freely through Europe.BAML, which employs 6,500 staff in Britain, has already announced it will start relocating 125 UK staff to “predominantly” its new European hub in Dublin this summer, but is also preparing to increase its presence at other EU offices.However, the latest move represents the deployment of the most senior staff announced by any bank so far. Tom Montag, BAML chief operating officer, said the moves would involve Sanaz Zaimi, head of global fixed income, currencies and commodities (FICC) sales, who will also assume the role of country executive for France, where the bank currently has about 700 staff.Vanessa Holtz, who is currently head of global G10 foreign exchange trading and co-head of EMEA G10 FX trading, will also be moving across the Channel, along with Othmane Kabbaj, head of EMEA emerging markets FICC sales.“I am pleased to announce, as we advance our Brexit preparations, several leadership appointments that will take effect as we establish operations in Europe,” Mr Montag said in the note to staff.

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Related stories:

• More London City firms prepared for EU relocations
• Businesses welcome post-Brexit plan for EU nationals
• UK “looking outside EU for financial partners”

For more related news and features, visit our Brexit section.  

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Banks seeking a smooth Brexit transition

Reuters reported, “International banks which built up London operations over the past few years are now scrambling to beef up EU outposts to overcome the loss of passporting rights which enable them to offer financial, advisory and trading services to corporate clients across all EU states with just one local licence.“US banks have said London would almost certainly remain their primary hub in Europe irrespective of Brexit, citing a broader pool of talent, a more suitable legal and regulatory framework and an Anglo-Saxon workplace culture as factors giving the British capital an edge.”In a separate move, the Spanish group Ferrovial, operators of Heathrow Airport, has announced it is relocating its international headquarters from Oxford in the UK to Amsterdam.“Ferrovial has considered the relocation of the corporate registered office of holding companies of international businesses, currently in the UK, to a jurisdiction (Amsterdam) which is under the umbrella of European Union law,” the company said in a statement. “There is no impact on employment, and our operations in the UK will remain unchanged.”Ferrovial, which runs three regional airports in Britain in addition to Heathrow, also operates airports, waste management and other infrastructure services across Europe, North America and Australia. Relocate’s new Global Mobility Toolkit provides free information, practical advice and support for HR, global mobility managers and global teams operating overseas.Access hundreds of global services and suppliers in our Online Directory 

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