EU finance chief warns Britain: no equivalence with wide divergence

The European Union will strive for close co-operation with Britain on financial services but London cannot expect "equivalence-based" access to the EU financial market if it diverges widely on rules, the bloc's finance chief said. "While the issue of equivalance is an area which we will discuss with the United Kingdom progressively, taking into account the UK's regulatory intentions on a case by case basis, there cannot be equivalance and wide divergence," EU Financial Services Commissioner Mairead McGuinness told an online event.

Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey urged the EU on Wednesday not to pick a fight with Britain over its huge financial services industry after Brexit, and said the bloc was demanding more of London than of other trade partners.