British customers in EU will lose bank account if no deal is reached

Major UK banking companies are informing their British customers living in the European Union that their bank accounts will be closed by end of the year should no post-Brexit trade deal be reached between the UK and the EU.

Lloyds, Barclays and Coutts have already notified their customers with this stance but other institutions are expected to follow suit.

A spokesperson for Lloyds Banking Group, said that the Bank wrote to its 13,000 customers based in different European countries advising them to make different arrangements.

The Bank said: “We have written to a small number of customers living in affected EU countries to let them know that due to the UK’s exit from the EU, regrettably we will no longer be able to provide them with some UK-based banking services.

Unless a trade deal is agreed with the EU, UK financial institutions will lose their passporting rights and will not be able to service customers in other countries, and would have to follow the specific rules of what services can be offered by banking institutions.

A Barclays spokesperson said: “In light of the UK leaving the EU at the end of 2020 we continue to review the services we offer to customers within the EEA, and any impacted customers will be contacted directly.”

On the other hand, HSBC said that being an international bank, it could continue to provide its services in a normal manner.

Read more via The Guardian