Since the referendum, it has emerged that a potential 9,000 jobs could move from London due to Brexit.
In April, Deutsche bank (ETR:DBK) said it would consider moving up to 4,000 UK jobs to Frankfurt and other EU centres. US bank JP Morgan (NYSE:JPM) is preparing to move up to 1,000 bankers out of the City into new Dublin offices. Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) has said it will require more employees in Madrid, Paris and other EU cities.
With these seemingly constant announcements from banks based in The City, many are questioning whether London will remain Europe’s financial capital post Brexit.
According to British Land (LON:BLND), one of the UK’s largest property companies, whilst tentants are taking longer to commit to office space, there is still a high demand for property in the City.
“Looking forward, the picture is a mixed one. The Brexit process has begun but uncertainty will continue for some considerable time,” said Chris Grigg, chief executive of the company behind the “Cheesegrater” in The City of London.
“London occupiers, particularly financial institutions, are making contingency plans but there is a wide range of possible outcomes here. Our conversations with occupiers tell us that a large majority continue to value London and believe in its place as a global centre, as we do.
“Although we are seeing businesses taking longer to commit and being more thorough in assessing options, we see polarisation of both occupier and investor demand accelerating with an increasing focus on the best quality space.”
British Land owns £13.9 billion worth of property and has offices and residential spaces in central London.
“We expect London to continue as a leading global city reflecting its diverse pool of intellectual capital and reputation for innovation, as well as its culture, language and strong regulatory and legal framework,” Grigg added.
Things are still in question for the capital however as negotiations continue to take place.
Recently elected French President, Emmanuel Macron, is determined to make the UK feel thier loss once out of the EU.
Macron has promised to fight any agreement preserving access to Europe for London-based financial services companies, while openly calling for bankers to move operations to Paris.
“It’s the British who will lose the most,” Macron said in a pre-election interview with the global affairs magazine Monocle. “The British are making a serious mistake over the long term.”