Preparing for an unknown future outside the EU

With either a hard Brexit or transition arrangement taking effect in just four months, there may be further upheaval – the parliamentary vote or even a threatened no-confidence motion in the Prime Minister – fuelling uncertainty for financial services firms. However, elements of the future landscape are in view. Roseyna Jahangir takes stock of how Brexit looks right now. [1]

Roseyna Jahangir is a managing associate in the financial services regulatory team at Womble Bond Dickinson (UK) LLP. Contact her on Roseyna.jahangir@wbd-uk.com.

It seems as though it has been a long, long time since the referendum on membership of the European Union: an interminable period of speculation, rumour, threats, dire forebodings. And somehow very little certainty at all about what life will look like after March 2019, ie the date specified in the United Kingdom’s notification of triggering Article 50. After March 2019, the UK will (in all likelihood) exit the EU. We are still in the dark about much of what will result from Brexit for many areas of life. For the financial services and insurance sectors, an optimist might say the picture is becoming slightly clearer.