Deutsche Bank CEO tells EU financial hubs to seize Brexit chance

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(Reuters) — The European Union's financial hubs must seize the opportunity of Britain's exit from the bloc, or risk losing out to New York, Singapore or Shanghai, Deutsche Bank CEO John Cryan said on Thursday.

"We are competing on a global basis. If we don't act, financial hubs in the European Union will not benefit from the chances that Brexit offers," he said in a speech in Berlin.

"The answer to this global competition has to be a more integrated capital market in the EU, and as quickly as possible," he added.

Global banks and insurers have begun signaling how they will put into action plans to cope with a "hard" exit from the EU, after Prime Minister Theresa May said that Britain would leave the single market.

Alternative European financial centers to London, including Frankfurt, Paris, Dublin and Luxembourg, have also been looking at ways of getting businesses to relocate to them when Britain leaves the EU.

Barclays, for example, is preparing to make Dublin its EU headquarters for when Britain leaves the European Union, according to a source familiar with the matter.

Mr. Cryan said London would become less attractive as a result of Brexit, despite its unique characteristics and the infrastructure that has been built up over many decades.

But Frankfurt, where Deutsche Bank is based, was a natural winner: "We see our home city as on the ascent - Frankfurt will become more important."