The UK’s ‘existential crisis’ over Brexit


Brexit has thrown Britain into an ‘existential crisis’, according to deVere chief executive Nigel Green, as Prime Minister Theresa May steps down and there are yet more delays to the UK’s departure date.
Economically, Brexit cost the UK economy £66 billion in less than three years, according to S&P Global Ratings, and confidence in the financial services sector was at an all-time low.
Other businesses had relocated their work to European cities like Frankfurt and Amsterdam and there was a significant drop in the value of sterling which meant imports were more expensive.
Green, who leads the global financial advisory group, said: “Brexit has thrown Britain into a profound existential crisis. It has cost Britain three lost years of opportunity.
“All of Parliament’s time and energy is vested in Brexit. It appears nothing else is getting done and so much needs to be done.”
He described this period as ‘Britain’s lost years’ as the country’s future hung in the balance with minimal certainty over what Brexit will look like. The latest Brexit deadline for the UK to leave the European Union is 31 October, 2019.
“After three years, the uncertainty grows rather than recedes. Who will be the Prime Minister that will take the UK out of the EU. Will there be a second referendum and what would be on the ballot paper? Will Britain leave with no deal?
“With so many serious and far-reaching questions hanging ominously unanswered-and more growing each week- Brexit Britain’s lost years are not even close to being over.”
Recommended for you
Sequoia Financial Group has declined by five financial advisers in the past week, four of whom have opened up a new AFSL, according to Wealth Data.
Insignia Financial chief executive Scott Hartley has detailed whether the firm will be selecting an exclusive bidder for the second phase of due diligence as it awaits revised bids from three private equity players.
Insignia Financial has reported a statutory net loss after tax of $17 million in its first half results, although the firm has noted cost optimisation means this is an improvement from a $50 million loss last year.
With alternative funds being described as “impossible” for fund managers to target towards advisers without the support of BDMs for education, Money Management explores the evolving nature of the distribution role.