(Bloomberg) -- Most U.K. bankers believe London will remain Europe's pre-eminent financial center after Brexit, according to consulting firm Synechron Inc.
About 72 percent agreed that the City of London would retain its role as the main hub for finance in the European Union for at least five years, Synechron said, citing a survey of 80 financial-services executives working in capital markets in the district. While 78 percent said Brexit will have a negative impact on U.K. financial markets, 82 percent said the EU would also be hurt.
Bank executives are bracing for the possible loss of their right to sell services freely around the EU from London, and plan to start moving jobs and operations out of the U.K. weeks after talks start over the U.K.'s withdrawal. Companies are concerned that Prime Minister Theresa May will prioritize immigration over the needs of the City in her negotiations with EU counterparts.
“Banks are no longer waiting for the government to trigger Article 50 and have begun setting up steering committees to plan for life outside the EU, with some already considering relocating staff," said Tim Cuddeford, a London-based managing director of Synechron's business consulting group.
Just over half of the executives surveyed thought the U.K. was in a strong position to negotiate a bespoke trading agreement with the EU.
To contact the reporter on this story: Gavin Finch in London at gfinch@bloomberg.net. To contact the editors responsible for this story: Michael J. Moore at mmoore55@bloomberg.net, Jon Menon, Keith Campbell
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