London December 7 2022: The boss of Europe’s largest exchange group took a swipe at the UK capital, saying Brexit means it is no longer Europe’s dominant financial center.
“London used to be the largest financial center of the European Union, and everybody liked it,” Euronext NV Chief Executive Stephane Boujnah told Bloomberg Television, “Today, London is the largest financial center of the United Kingdom.”
Boujnah was speaking after the combined market capitalization of primary listings in France, excluding ETFs and ADRs, briefly overtook that of Britain last month. While more money changes hands daily in London than in Paris, the turnover across all of Euronext’s exchanges is double that of London, Boujnah said.
Stock market listings outside of London are the “new normal,” he said, citing airline Ryanair Holdings Plc favoring Dublin trading over London, as well as Universal Music Group N.V. and Allfunds Group Plc choosing an IPO in Amsterdam over the UK capital.
“Companies, that in ordinary situations would have listed in London, are listed outside of London,” Boujnah said.
