Seventeen months after the UK's Brexit referendum took place, negotiations between the United Kingdom and the EU are struggling due to the extreme complexity of the matter at hand. The longer it takes for the representatives to agree on key issues including trade, customs and the final Brexit "divorce" bill, the more uncertainty it creates for the UK's economy.
Brexit will clearly have a major impact on many sectors in the UK, but the financial industry is likely to see the most shake-ups. The financial services sector contributes to more than 7 per cent of GDP and employs over 1.1 million people.
Over the centuries London has established many key positions in the financial sector. The City is the largest global hub for foreign exchange markets, derivative markets and money markets, and is a co-leader in several other segments.
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The prevalence of the English language and the geographical position between Asian and US time zones also supported the development of the financial centre. London is able to maintain its favoured position due to the availability of skilled personnel, a good regulatory environment and access to other financial markets and clients.
Brexit is undermining these aspects; a lot of uncertainties are emerging. Skilled foreign workers might be at risk of leaving the country if the UK and EU politicians decide to get tough. The main regulatory risk is that asset management companies and financial service providers will lose their "European passport" allowing cross-border activity within the EU. This regulatory change will force companies to relocate their business, at least partially, in the euro zone.
Another uncertainty is the presence of European agencies in London, which will be under pressure to relocate elsewhere in the EU. The European Banking Association, one of the three European financial supervisory authorities, will be courted by a number of governments.
These moves are not particularly damaging in terms of job losses but more in terms of prestige for the city. More damaging is the loss of the euro clearing activity. Clearing is the process by which a third-party provider acts as the middleman for both sellers and buyers of financial contracts. This mechanism aims to reduce the dangers of a domino-effect spreading across the entire system in case one counterpart cannot fulfil its commitment.
Following the 2008 financial crisis, clearing has become a much larger business, following the G20 insistence on over-the-counter transactions being settled in clearing houses. LCH Clearnet, located in London, is the largest clearing house for euros globally, and might be forced to relocate its activity in the EU. The risk here is that the whole clearing ecosystem will move too.
For as long as uncertainty surrounds Brexit negotiations, it will be difficult to quantify the impact of financial institutions and jobs leaving the City. PwC estimates that Brexit could cost the UK between 70,000 to 100,000 financial services jobs by 2020. The prospect of such a migration has whetted the appetite of other European financial centres, which are fiercely competing to lure bankers away from London.
So far, Frankfurt is attracting the big players. Morgan Stanley, Citigroup, Standard Chartered and Nomura are among those that have chosen to relocate there to access the EU single market. Germany is the largest economy in the euro zone and the headquarters of the European Central Bank is located in Frankfurt. German financial institutions are recognised for their professionalism; however they are rarely market leaders. The main challenge might be to convince City workers to live in a city where the way of life might be perceived as less glamorous.
Paris also benefits from the location of many bank headquarters; three of the top five banks of the euro zone are located in the French capital. French asset management is also well developed and recognised worldwide. Employers will have access to a large pool of skilled labour and quality infrastructures. Beyond a tax environment which is less favourable, the key challenge will be for Paris to deal with mistrust. France has historically been considered as a country hostile to finance; François Hollande, the former President, stated that finance was his true enemy. The new president, Emmanuel Macron, an ex-banker, will have to convince a lot of sceptics that France is committed to supporting the financial industry in the long term.
Dublin and Luxembourg are also active in the financial services sector and would love to gain from this reshuffle. Both of them have historically focused on fund administration and they have built strong positions over the past decades. Dublin is probably better positioned due to its cultural proximity with London and the English language.
All these countries have started to take measures to make their environment more attractive to welcome these financial services companies and their staff. Brexit is a unique opportunity for these cities to increase their positions to become the financial centre in Europe.
Sebastien Henin is the managing director and head of wealth management at Alienor Capital
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Tottenham 0-1 Ajax, Tuesday
Second leg
Ajax v Tottenham, Wednesday, May 8, 11pm
Game is on BeIN Sports
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The specs: 2018 Volkswagen Teramont
Price, base / as tested Dh137,000 / Dh189,950
Engine 3.6-litre V6
Gearbox Eight-speed automatic
Power 280hp @ 6,200rpm
Torque 360Nm @ 2,750rpm
Fuel economy, combined 11.7L / 100km
Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
hall of shame
SUNDERLAND 2002-03
No one has ended a Premier League season quite like Sunderland. They lost each of their final 15 games, taking no points after January. They ended up with 19 in total, sacking managers Peter Reid and Howard Wilkinson and losing 3-1 to Charlton when they scored three own goals in eight minutes.
SUNDERLAND 2005-06
Until Derby came along, Sunderland’s total of 15 points was the Premier League’s record low. They made it until May and their final home game before winning at the Stadium of Light while they lost a joint record 29 of their 38 league games.
HUDDERSFIELD 2018-19
Joined Derby as the only team to be relegated in March. No striker scored until January, while only two players got more assists than goalkeeper Jonas Lossl. The mid-season appointment Jan Siewert was to end his time as Huddersfield manager with a 5.3 per cent win rate.
ASTON VILLA 2015-16
Perhaps the most inexplicably bad season, considering they signed Idrissa Gueye and Adama Traore and still only got 17 points. Villa won their first league game, but none of the next 19. They ended an abominable campaign by taking one point from the last 39 available.
FULHAM 2018-19
Terrible in different ways. Fulham’s total of 26 points is not among the lowest ever but they contrived to get relegated after spending over £100 million (Dh457m) in the transfer market. Much of it went on defenders but they only kept two clean sheets in their first 33 games.
LA LIGA: Sporting Gijon, 13 points in 1997-98.
BUNDESLIGA: Tasmania Berlin, 10 points in 1965-66
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
UAE tour of the Netherlands
UAE squad: Rohan Mustafa (captain), Shaiman Anwar, Ghulam Shabber, Mohammed Qasim, Rameez Shahzad, Mohammed Usman, Adnan Mufti, Chirag Suri, Ahmed Raza, Imran Haider, Mohammed Naveed, Amjad Javed, Zahoor Khan, Qadeer Ahmed
Fixtures:
Monday, 1st 50-over match
Wednesday, 2nd 50-over match
Thursday, 3rd 50-over match
Uefa Nations League: How it works
The Uefa Nations League, introduced last year, has reached its final stage, to be played over five days in northern Portugal. The format of its closing tournament is compact, spread over two semi-finals, with the first, Portugal versus Switzerland in Porto on Wednesday evening, and the second, England against the Netherlands, in Guimaraes, on Thursday.
The winners of each semi will then meet at Porto’s Dragao stadium on Sunday, with the losing semi-finalists contesting a third-place play-off in Guimaraes earlier that day.
Qualifying for the final stage was via League A of the inaugural Nations League, in which the top 12 European countries according to Uefa's co-efficient seeding system were divided into four groups, the teams playing each other twice between September and November. Portugal, who finished above Italy and Poland, successfully bid to host the finals.
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McLaren GT specs
Engine: 4-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: seven-speed
Power: 620bhp
Torque: 630Nm
Price: Dh875,000
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THE SPECS
Engine: 3.5-litre V6
Transmission: six-speed manual
Power: 325bhp
Torque: 370Nm
Speed: 0-100km/h 3.9 seconds
Price: Dh230,000
On sale: now
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 201hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 320Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 6-speed auto
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Tax authority targets shisha levy evasion
The Federal Tax Authority will track shisha imports with electronic markers to protect customers and ensure levies have been paid.
Khalid Ali Al Bustani, director of the tax authority, on Sunday said the move is to "prevent tax evasion and support the authority’s tax collection efforts".
The scheme’s first phase, which came into effect on 1st January, 2019, covers all types of imported and domestically produced and distributed cigarettes. As of May 1, importing any type of cigarettes without the digital marks will be prohibited.
He said the latest phase will see imported and locally produced shisha tobacco tracked by the final quarter of this year.
"The FTA also maintains ongoing communication with concerned companies, to help them adapt their systems to meet our requirements and coordinate between all parties involved," he said.
As with cigarettes, shisha was hit with a 100 per cent tax in October 2017, though manufacturers and cafes absorbed some of the costs to prevent prices doubling.
What are the GCSE grade equivalents?
- Grade 9 = above an A*
- Grade 8 = between grades A* and A
- Grade 7 = grade A
- Grade 6 = just above a grade B
- Grade 5 = between grades B and C
- Grade 4 = grade C
- Grade 3 = between grades D and E
- Grade 2 = between grades E and F
- Grade 1 = between grades F and G
AS IT STANDS IN POOL A
1. Japan - Played 3, Won 3, Points 14
2. Ireland - Played 3, Won 2, Lost 1, Points 11
3. Scotland - Played 2, Won 1, Lost 1, Points 5
Remaining fixtures
Scotland v Russia – Wednesday, 11.15am
Ireland v Samoa – Saturday, 2.45pm
Japan v Scotland – Sunday, 2.45pm
SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20NOTHING%20PHONE%20(2A)
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The Great Derangement: Climate Change and the Unthinkable
Amitav Ghosh, University of Chicago Press
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
India squad for fourth and fifth Tests
Kohli (c), Dhawan, Rahul, Shaw, Pujara, Rahane (vc), Karun, Karthik (wk), Pant (wk), Ashwin, Jadeja, Pandya, Ishant, Shami, Umesh, Bumrah, Thakur, Vihari
