‘Because of Brexit, because of the way the world’s evolving, the talent that was more centred here is more mobile’
Brexit has had a damaging effect on London’s status as a global financial hub, with talent leaving the country, the boss of Goldman Sachs has warned, and other European cities benefitting.
David Solomon, chairman and chief executive of the bank, said it is diverting staff away from London to rival cities such as Paris, Frankfurt and Munich, following the vote to leave the EU.
Speaking to Sky’s The Master Investor Podcast with Wilfred Frost, he said: “The financial industry is still driven by talent and capital formation, and those things are much more mobile than they were 25 years ago.
“London continues to be an important financial centre. But because of Brexit, because of the way the world’s evolving, the talent that was more centred here is more mobile.
“We as a firm have many more people on the continent.”
Describing Goldman Sachs’ operational expansion outside the UK following the Brexit referendum, he said: “If you go back, you know, ten years ago, I think we probably had 80 people in Paris. You know, we have 400 people in Paris now… And so in Goldman Sachs today, if you’re in Europe, you can live in London, you can live in Paris, you can live in Germany, in Frankfurt or Munich, you can live in Italy, you can live in Switzerland.
“And we’ve got, you know, real offices. You just have to recognise that talent is more mobile.”
Basit Mahmood is editor of Left Foot Forward
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