Goldman Sachs Suggests London Consider A World Without Goldman Sachs

Author:
Bess Levin
Updated:
Jan 14, 2019
Original:
Dec 4, 2013

Goldman Sachs has said it would move much of its European business out of London if Britain leaves the European Union. The warning from the world's most powerful investment bank comes as political pressure for Britain to leave the EU mounts. David Cameron has committed to holding a referendum on Britain's membership if the Conservatives win the next election and some Tory MPs have been agitating for an early vote on the matter. Michael Sherwood, co-chief executive of Goldman Sachs International, said: "In all likelihood we would transfer a substantial part of our European business from London to a eurozone location – the most obvious contenders being Paris and Frankfurt." [Guardian via Heidi Moore]

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Relatedly, Goldman is looking for some young bodies. Financial firms in London, besieged by Europe’s sovereign-debt crisis, probably will shrink their workforce this year, snapping a hiring rebound from 2008’s credit crisis as New York’s industry ekes out job growth. Banks, insurers and other financial-services firms may eliminate about 3,000 jobs across greater London as companies in the New York region add 9,000, according to U.K.-based researcher Oxford Economics Ltd. London’s proximity to the debt crisis is undermining the city’s efforts to gain on its trans-Atlantic rival. While Wall Street also is suffering from a global slowdown in trading and deal-making, North American banks are benefiting from a surge in consumer lending...Some large banks are offsetting senior-staff reductions by recruiting less-expensive workers. New York-based Goldman Sachs, seeking to cut $500 million of costs, expects its workforce to feature a greater proportion of junior employees by year-end, Chief Financial Officer David A. Viniar, 57, said July 17. “Wall Street is tilting toward younger, up-and-coming talent,” Kahn said. London Firings Seen Surging As Finance Firms Add Jobs In NY [Bloomberg]

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