JPMorgan to expand Paris hub post-Brexit

JPMorgan to expand Paris hub post-Brexit

JPMorgan Chase & Co became the latest investment bank to significantly expand its Paris hub, seizing new premises in the French capital. The move comes as part of a plan to relocate some its services from London after Britain would severe its two-way access with the bloc.

JPMorgan would have declined to move to Paris if the option was available to them in 2016, said French executives, but government-led labor law and taxation reforms made it review its stance.

The U.S. bank said it plans to buy a building in central Paris from France’s BNP Paribas allowing it to continue operations in the EU after Brexit. The new office is said to be capable of housing more than 450 staff in the coming years.

The move is part of a wider trend of banks shifting selected activities to euro-zone cities ahead of Brexit, without calling into question London’s dominance as Europe’s premier financial center.