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Brexit continues to reap rewards for New York stock traders

Empire State building prepares to reopen to visitors and tenants following outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in New York
The north view of the Manhattan skyline is seen from the 86th floor observation deck of the Empire State Building, June 24, 2020. Picture taken June 24, 2020. REUTERS/Mike Segar

New York remains the global winner after Brexit forced 2.3 trillion pounds ($3.25 trillion) of monthly trading in derivatives to leave the City of London by March, a report from consultants Deloitte and data company IHS Markit said on Tuesday.

Britain left the European Union’s full legal orbit on Dec. 31 and the UK financial sector’s access to the bloc is now limited.

Banks and other market participants in the EU are no longer allowed to use platforms in London to trade swaps, forcing them to switch to alternatives in the bloc or in the United States, which the EU has given permission to serve EU investors.

Initial figures in January showed that chunks of trading in interest rate swaps left London for trading platforms in the EU and United States and the report on Tuesday confirmed that the trend has become embedded.

“Overall, more trading went to U.S. venues than EU venues,” the report said.

More worrying for the City, the report said the relocation in euro denominated swaps trading has gone beyond what is strictly required by the regulatory curbs as market participants try to trade all their swaps in one place.