JPMorgan prepares transfer of dozens of workers outside the United Kingdom | Economy | companies

JPMorgan Chase asked "several dozens" of employees to lead the first batch of relocations from the UK to mainland Europe early next year, initiating plans to protect their business after Brexit, according to an internal memo sent to workers and which Reuters had access to.

In its first mass communication this year to its 16,000 employees in the UK related to Brexit, the entity exposes the organizational and strategic challenges facing global banks as they prepare the British exit from the European Union. .

The note is published one day before the British Prime Minister, Theresa May, receives from her home in Checkers the ministers with whom she will discuss how to reform trade relations with the new EU-27.

JPMorgan Investment and Investment Banking Executive Chairman Daniel Pinto and Mary Erdoes, Executive Chairman of the Asset Management Division, sign the e-mailed note that also outlines the plans of the society. strengthen its presence in cities such as Madrid, Paris and Milan.

Up to now, the US entity hopes to strengthen its subsidiaries in Frankfurt, Luxembourg and Dublin, where it already has a banking license.

A JPMorgan spokesperson confirmed the authenticity of the memo, which was also sent to his staff in Continental Europe, the Middle East and Africa, but declined to comment further.

Employees who pledged to leave the UK prior to "Brexit Day" on March 29, 2019, work primarily in customer service or risk analysis positions in the investment banking division as asset management.

Other banks have already suggested the possibility of transferring employees to Madrid. Last year, a source said Citigroup was studying by moving its private banking division to the Spanish capital.

The note also states that JPMorgan hoped to move or add "a few hundred jobs" to its workforce in the EU by next March and that it has already started looking for candidates for key positions, but moves could be more gradual if an appropriate transition agreement is confirmed.

However, the total size of its workforce in the EU "depends entirely on the confirmation of the transition agreement".

"We want to avoid affecting the lives of employees and their families with changes that may be unnecessary or premature, as long as political negotiations and regulatory consequences remain unclear," the memo says.