One estimate by EY, commissioned by the London Stock Exchange, predicts that 200,000 UK jobs are at stake.
Meanwhile, the Association of British Insurers (ABI) told peers that an early agreement on a transitional phase was needed since this would “provide the option for the firms most affected by Brexit not to take swift decisions in 2017 on scaling back”.
The Lord’s report predicts that failure to strike a transitional Brexit will also affect the ability to access highly-qualified staff and easily transfer them between the UK and the EU.
“This is even more important for the fintech sector, which relies heavily on talent, including entrepreneurial talent, from overseas,” it said.
Falkner also called on the EU to “carefully consider” the findings of the report, arguing that London’s largest financial institutions are more likely to relocate to New York rather than to continental Europe.
“EU firms rely on the services provided in the UK, and pain caused to the UK’s financial sector will not be the EU’s gain, but New York’s. We are in danger of a lose-lose scenario if pragmatism does not prevail.”
