Standard Chartered PLC (LON:STAN) said on Monday that regulatory approval for its Brexit contingency plan to turn its Frankfurt branch into its European Union subsidiary is unlikely to be granted until autumn at the earliest.
The lender is awaiting approval from German and European banking regulators for the hub, which will allow it to continue operating across the EU after the UK leaves the bloc in March 2019. It submitted its license application to the authorities in November 2017.
StanChart also said the bank may have to move more jobs than originally planned to Frankfurt. In March, the company started interviewing candidates for about 20 jobs it is sending to the German city.
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The delay comes amid sector-wide pressure from European regulators to transfer more staff and submit more detailed plans for their EU hubs to prevent lenders from creating token offices.
The European Central Bank plays a key role in setting the conditions for banks’ the new EU bases. Last month, the ECB said it wants to ensure banks have a long-term plan for their post-Brexit hubs to avoid them becoming little more than empty shells.
Other lenders planning to set up new EU hubs including Lloyds Banking Group PLC (LON:LLOY), Barclays PLC (LON:BARC) and Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC (LON:RBS).
Lloyds is setting up a subsidiary in Berlin, while Barclays has chosen Dublin as its EU base and RBS has picked Amsterdam.