London faces Brexit talent drain, says senior JPMorgan banker

[LONDON] London is losing talent as financial markets fragment following Brexit, according to one the most prominent bankers at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

"The talent pool in the city has started to dwindle as more professionals relocate to Europe and elsewhere," Vis Raghavan, chief executive officer for Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) at JPMorgan, said in an interview in London. "This fragmentation does not bode well, especially for the financial industry."

Last week, a report by several City organisations said that Brexit was making it harder and more expensive to hire foreign staff. International workers, mostly from the European Union, make up about a fifth of the 1.1 million people in UK financial services.

Meanwhile, some activity has shifted to adhere to new post-Brexit rules on where certain business can take place. "We are seeing some of the impact of Brexit playing out, although not always as expected. A lot of derivatives trading activities on venues have moved to SEFs (swap execution facilities) in the US."

Neither London nor the EU has particularly benefited," Mr Raghavan said.

SEFs have won business since the European Union barred its derivatives traders from using London venues.

BLOOMBERG