The assertion that financial services cannot be part of a free trade agreement between the UK and the EU post-Brexit must be challenged, Chancellor Philip Hammond has said, highlighting that it is not a “zero-sum game, where any loss of market share in London is automatically a gain to another EU Capital".

In his speech on financial services at HSBC, 7 March, Hammond said “it is in the interest of both the UK and the EU27 to ensure that EU businesses and citizens can continue to access the UK Financial Services Hub”.

“The UK Financial Services hub is an engine that powers the real economy not just in the UK, but right across Europe. Because the fact is that the UK financial services hub is not just a British asset but a European asset too supporting businesses, savers and citizens across the EU serving the whole of our continent, as well as the world beyond. And not just serving Europe but powered by the talent of hundreds of thousands of Europeans who work in it,” he stated.

Hammond acknowledged however, there are challenges.

“I recognise that there will be many legitimate concerns, concerns about the policing of rules once we are separate legal jurisdictions, concerns about the legal framework for regulatory and supervisory cooperation and concerns about the implications for financial stability and for the operation of Eurozone monetary policy.

"We stand ready to engage on all these issues.”

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