Bank Of England says preparations about departure from EU are on track

The Bank of England's preparations for Britain's departure from the European Union are "broadly on track", with 80 banks and insurers from the bloc applying to keep London offices as branches, BoE Deputy Governor Sam Woods said on Wednesday. Woods said the BoE expects about 170 EU firms in total to seek to keep offices in Britain as branches after March, with about 80 having applied for the status so far.