Amsterdam maintains post-Brexit status as Europe’s share trading hub
Amsterdam maintained its position as the heart of European equity trading, a position it has held over London since July 2021 after the shift in market activity post-Brexit.
The average daily traded value in shares was €10.5bn in February, compared to €8.95bn in London, according to data from Cboe Global Markets.
Paris and Frankfurt came third and fourth, with €5.6bn and €5.0bn traded daily in each.
Amsterdam has been the busiest centre for share trading in Europe since July 2021, when the UK’s departure from the EU meant €6.5bn worth of deals went to the EU at the end of the transition period.
London’s position as the undisputed financial capital of Europe has been increasingly questioned over the past few years.
Since January last year, nearly 100 firms have left the capital’s embattled bourse, while just 25 have floated, raising £1.3bn.
The UK has also been hit by five years of heavy consecutive outflows from retail funds, with over £13bn pulled in 2023, according to data from the Investment Association.
Politicians and regulators have launched a slew of initiatives to make the Square Mile a more attractive place for international finance following Brexit.
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is pressing ahead with plans to shake up listing rules in the UK, including merging the standard and premium segments of the market and scrapping a requirement for firms to get shareholder approval for major deals.
Treasury officials, meanwhile, are pushing through the Edinburgh Reforms, as part of which City regulators will have to consider growth and competitiveness when making regulatory decisions.
The City will face a fight with other European financial centres however. Earlier today, Emmanuel Macron, the French President, said “we need to step up the efforts begun in 2017 to make France a more attractive place to help finance our economy”.