Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein hinted that the bank will be bolstering operations in Frankfurt, Germany.
Blankfein said in a tweet:
“Just left Frankfurt. Great meetings, great weather, really enjoyed it. Good, because I’ll be spending a lot more time there. #Brexit”.
Just left Frankfurt. Great meetings, great weather, really enjoyed it. Good, because I’ll be spending a lot more time there. #Brexit
— Lloyd Blankfein (@lloydblankfein) October 19, 2017
Goldman Sachs, which employs around 6,000 people in London, revealed two weeks ago that it was leasing eight floors in a new Frankfurt tower block that could soon give it space for up to 1,000 staff – five times the current number of employees the company has in the German city.
Blankfein has voiced his concerns about Brexit in the past. Earlier this year he warned that it would “stall” the development of the City of London and could erode its position as a global financial centre.
A Downing Street spokesman said in response to Blankfein’s tweet:
“We’re not going to comment on an individual statement. But let’s be clear, London is and will remain the world’s leading financial centre.
“We have the breadth of talent, legal system, regulation and deep pools of capital that are simply unrivalled by centres anywhere else in Europe and we are confident of securing an ambitious economic partnership with the EU that will include financial services.”
Other major banks including JP Morgan, Standard Chartered, Morgan Stanley and Citigroup have similarly announced plans to bolster operations in other EU cities to deal with the aftermath of Brexit.
The announcement comes ahead of next week’s report from the Engineering Employers’ Federation (EEF). The report is expected to reveal that half of manufacturers are putting investment on hold amid talks of a no-deal Brexit.
