South Korean bank plans to open subsidiary in Germany after Brexit

ONE OF South Korea’s biggest banks will open a subsidiary in Frankfurt this autumn, making it the latest lender to commit to the German city in the wake of the Brexit vote.

Woori Bank currently offers wholesale and corporate banking services to clients through its London branch, which has been operating since 1978, but will soon extend those services through a Frankfurt subsidiary set to open later this year.

Woori already has a subsidiary in Poland, but is expanding its European operations to build relationships with South Korean businesses in Germany and also to ensure it can capture business on the continent no matter the outcome of Brexit negotiations.

A number of banks have announced similar contingency plans after Prime Minister Theresa May confirmed that Britain would ditch the single market, which would subsequently see City firms lose passporting rights that provide wide-ranging EU access for UK-based financial services firms.

The South Korean bank’s decision to set up the subsidiary was made at the start of this year and will likely see it set up shop with five staff this autumn – all of which are expected to be new hires. Woori’s London office is set to continue operating as normal, with its 17 staff unlikely to face transfers.

Hubertus Vath, the managing director of city lobby group Frankfurt Main Finance (FMF), says he expects a total of 10,000 jobs to move to Frankfurt over the next five years, assuming that the European Banking Authority and euro clearing are moved to the German hub.