Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) confirmed its decision for Dublin to be its new European base, in light of ongoing Brexit negotiations.
Banks have been asked to submit plans to the Bank of England earlier this month regarding their Brexit contingency plans, with the UK planning to exit the union in March 2019.
Bank of America is the first of the big US Banks to confirm a move to Ireland. According to reports, both Citigroup and Morgan Stanley have chosen Frankfurt as the destination for their European trading base.
Bank of America currently employs 700 staff in Dublin and 6,500 in the UK, of which 4,500 are based in the English capital.
Brian Moynihan, chairman and chief executive of Bank of America, said:
“Dublin is the home of more of our employees than any other European city outside of the UK.
“We already have a fully licensed and operational Irish-domiciled bank which, combined with Ireland’s strong commitment to business and economic growth, makes Dublin the natural location to consolidate our legal entities as we transition.”
He continued: “While we await further clarity around the Brexit negotiations, we are making all necessary preparations to serve our clients however those discussions conclude.”
This follows call from a high-ranking Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) official for the UK government to commit to a transitional plan for Brexit.
Chief executive of Goldman Sachs International, Richard Gnodde, told the BBC last Thursday that money is being spent “every single day” on contingency plans for Brexit.
“The other way to describe the contingency plan is that we’re buying insurance, so I’m spending money every single day to make sure that come March 2019 I’m open for business,” said Mr Gnodde.
“If I knew today that we would have a significant transition period I could stop spending that (contingency) money because I know I would have time to transition my business.”