The global online trading platform IG Group announced today that its UK arm will no longer service EEA clients as Britain’s exit from the European Union is only two days away. The larges spread betting and CFDs provider in Europe will set all non-UK accounts to “closing only” from 31 December 2020.
The affected clients will have 30 days to close their positions before they are closed at the prevailing price from 31 January 2021.
As preparation for Brexit, IG’s UK entity had offered its clients the option to be moved to the group’s European subsidiary, IG Europe, which is based in Germany and is authorised and regulated by BaFin and Bundesbank.
The company stated:
If you have previously agreed to transfer your account to IG Europe but have not received confirmation that the transfer has taken place, please email the helpdesk / live chat us as soon as possible so we can look into this.
Please note that, after 31 December, you will still be placed on closings only until your account has been successfully transferred. Therefore if you consent to the transfer, you won’t be able to open any new positions from 31 December until the transfer has taken place. We expect the transfer to happen in mid-January, and we will notify you of your transfer date in advance.
As the end of the Brexit transition period is just two days away, UK brokers are losing their “passporting” rights allowing them to provide services across Europe. From the beginning of the new year, they will need country-specific approvals to continue providing services. The change has made some brokers abolish offering services to non-UK clients. Financial advisers based in UK will have to abide different rules and requirements if they want to operate in Europe
