Goldman Sachs opens Brexit-transition office in Luxembourg

4th December 2020 Finance 24108

Luxembourg has long been a global hub for investment funds and insurance companies, and is home to about 5 trillion euros ($6.1 billion) in fund assets. More than 60 financial firms have established operations in the Grand Duchy due to Brexit, according to Nicolas Mackel, the head of Luxembourg for Finance, a development agency for the sector.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. opened a Luxembourg-based entity to service rich individuals based in the European Union, the latest in the Wall Street bank’s series of moves to avoid Brexit disruption.

The Luxembourg branch of subsidiary Goldman Sachs Bank Europe SE opened last month, according to regulatory records. It will be used for some of Goldman’s European private wealth management clients, according to a person familiar with the matter who requested anonymity.

With fewer than 20 working days to go until the post-Brexit transition period expires, big banks are making their final preparations for the rupture between London and its former financial hinterland. Banks with London hubs will lose their passporting rights from Jan. 1, and talks around a financial-services accord between the U.K. and Europe have made little progress, causing anxiety in the City of London.