Financial services sector needs to come together against no-deal Brexit
Following the comments last week from the UK’s International Trade Secretary, Liam Fox that Britain should accept a no-deal Brexit rather than asking for more time, the financial services industry needs to unite and fight against such a notion.
My firm stance comes as the Association of British Insurers told MPs a few days ago said that it may be “illegal” to pay out private pensions to British expatriates should Britain leave the EU with no deal in place.
Additionally, the City of London maintains that Brexit will end up costing the UK some 12,000 jobs in the financial services sector short-term, with this number rising in the long-term.
As such, the industry needs to come together and fight the possibility of a no-deal Brexit reducing client rights, protections and freedoms, not to mention harming the financial sector itself.
As I was quoted as saying in International Investment, Finance Monthly, The London Economic and Fintech Insight, amongst other media, it is a ludicrous conception that should Britain exit the EU with no deal, and free movement of capital ceases, people may not receive their retirement income which they’ve saved over numerous years just because they made the decision to live abroad, which of course they are permitted to do.
The financial services industry needs to get moving and push the policymakers to make sure our clients’ rights are safeguarded as a matter of utmost urgency.
As a result of the ongoing uncertainty surrounding Brexit, I believe we’ll see a higher number of people who are eligible to do so, moving their British pensions out of the UK and into HMRC-recognised pensions while they are still able.
Many more people will be making a move to protect their pension pots by transferring them into a secure, regulated, English-speaking jurisdiction outside the UK.
Moreover, it’s crucial that the financial sector speaks up. As an industry we need continuity and assurance. What the financial services industry does not need is the pandemonium of a no-deal Brexit scenario.
To my mind, a no-deal will, in all likelihood, result in less products and services that we are able to offer clients, in addition to a hike in costs for businesses and, in due course, the client.
It is therefore vital that we connect with politicians and stop this potential post-Brexit disaster from taking place.