Wells Fargo seeks investment firm license for new EU/EEA investment banking and capital markets platform, Wells Fargo Securities Europe S.A.
LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--`Wells
Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC),
today announced it has applied for its investment firm license from the
French Prudential Supervision and Resolution Authority (Autorité de
Contrôle Prudentiel et de Résolution; ACPR), which is responsible for
supervising the French banking and insurance sectors. This announcement
is part of the company’s Brexit strategy, which is predicated on
supporting the capital markets and investment banking needs of Wells
Fargo’s customers in a post Brexit environment.
“With Brexit on the horizon, Wells Fargo is committed to providing a
transition, which is as seamless as possible, for its markets and
investment banking customers within the European Union (EU) and European
Economic Area (EEA),” said Alicia Reyes, head of Wells Fargo Securities
in Europe, Middle East and Africa. “Wells Fargo has been present in
Europe for many decades, and during this time, we have strengthened our
relationships with our local authorities and deepened our customer base.
Through Wells Fargo Securities Europe, we expect to leverage our network
in the region and beyond by establishing a Paris hub in continental
Europe.”
Subject to regulatory approval by the ACPR, the investment firm license
will be held by Wells Fargo Securities Europe S.A. (WFSE) in Paris,
France. It is intended that WFSE - which will be a new subsidiary of
Wells Fargo - will offer a range of capital markets and investment
banking services to its European and international customers that
require access to the EU and the EEA.
“I welcome the decision of Wells Fargo to choose Paris as the hub for
its trading activities. The creation of a European hub in Paris for its
trading activities will allow Wells Fargo to benefit from the deep
liquidity of markets, as well as a positive ecosystem including the
strong talent pool in Paris,” said Bruno Le Maire, Minister for Economy
and Finances of France.
Authorised and regulated by the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA),
Wells Fargo Securities International Limited (WFSIL) is currently the
Company’s broker dealer in the UK and provides equities; fixed income,
currencies sales and trading; futures clearing and execution; debt
capital markets origination; and investment banking advisory services to
customers within the EU/EEA. Post Brexit, when Britain leaves EU in
March 2019, customers from the UK and most non-EU markets will continue
to be served in the UK by WFSIL.
Further announcements on Wells Fargo’s Brexit strategy are expected to
be made in the near future.
About Wells Fargo Securities
Wells Fargo Securities delivers a comprehensive set of capital markets
and advisory products and services, including public debt and equity
origination and distribution, investment research, interest rate,
commodity and equity risk hedging, mergers and acquisitions advice,
prime services, structured lending facilities, foreign exchange
services, and municipal bond origination. Wells Fargo Securities
consists of nearly 5,000 team members in more than 40 offices across
North America, Europe and Asia.
Wells Fargo Securities is the trade name for certain capital markets and
investment banking services of Wells Fargo & Company and its
subsidiaries, including Wells Fargo Securities, LLC, member NYSE, FINRA,
NFA and SIPC, Wells Fargo Prime Services, LLC, member FINRA, NFA and
SIPC, Wells Fargo Bank, National Association, Wells Fargo Securities
International Limited (authorised and regulated by the U.K. FCA), Wells
Fargo Securities Asia Limited (licensed by the HK SFC), and Wells Fargo
Securities (Japan) Co., Ltd. (registered with the KLFB).
About Wells Fargo
Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) is a diversified, community-based
financial services company with $1.9 trillion in assets. Wells Fargo’s
vision is to satisfy our customers’ financial needs and help them
succeed financially. Founded in 1852 and headquartered in San Francisco,
Wells Fargo provides banking, investment and mortgage products and
services, as well as consumer and commercial finance, through 7,950
locations, 13,000 ATMs, the internet (wellsfargo.com) and mobile
banking, and has offices in 37 countries and territories to support
customers who conduct business in the global economy. With approximately
262,000 team members, Wells Fargo serves one in three households in the
United States. Wells Fargo & Company was ranked No. 26 on Fortune’s 2018
rankings of America’s largest corporations. News, insights and
perspectives from Wells Fargo are also available at Wells
Fargo Stories.