Frankfurt and London
Frankfurt and London compete for the clearing of euro derivatives, and since June 2025 EU rules require large EU firms to hold an active account at an EU clearing house such as Eurex Clearing in Frankfurt. The Deutsche Bundesbank keeps 432 tonnes of German gold at the Bank of England in London.
Since the Brexit transition period ended on 31 December 2020, a license from the Financial Conduct Authority no longer reaches the European Union. For a fintech, crypto firm or bank from London, Frankfurt is a route into Germany and the other member states, and a German license from BaFin reaches every one of them.
Euro clearing and EMIR 3
EMIR 3, Regulation (EU) 2024/2987, introduced the active account requirement, which has applied since 25 June 2025. EU firms that are subject to the clearing obligation and exceed the clearing threshold must hold an active account at a clearing house in the EU. ESMA set the operational conditions for that account in its final report of 19 June 2025, and firms with at least 6 billion euros of affected contracts must also clear a representative share there.
For Eurex Clearing in Frankfurt the rule matters directly, because Eurex Clearing clears euro interest rate swaps and competes with LCH in London for that business. The European Commission still lets EU firms use clearing houses in the UK, and it extended that equivalence until 30 June 2028.
From an FCA license to an EU license
A firm authorized by the FCA lost its EU passport on 1 January 2021 and cannot serve EU clients from London under its UK license. A payment or e-money institution needs an authorization under the PSD2 rules, an investment firm needs a license under MiFID II, and a crypto firm needs a CASP license under MiCA.
In Germany the license comes from BaFin, and a BaFin license can be used across the EU through EU passporting. UK banks that take deposits, lend or give guarantees to EU clients need an authorized EU branch from 11 January 2027 under Article 21c of Directive (EU) 2024/1619.
The exchange merger that failed
On 29 March 2017 the European Commission prohibited the merger of Deutsche Börse and London Stock Exchange Group. Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said the deal would have created a near monopoly in the clearing of fixed income instruments.
The two groups had offered to sell LCH.Clearnet SA, the French clearing house of the London group, but the Commission judged that remedy too weak. The Deutsche Börse Group then went on alone, and it runs its derivatives and clearing business from Frankfurt today.
Fintech events in London
The UK fintech association Innovate Finance holds its Global Summit 2027 on 20 April 2027 at Guildhall in the City of London. The RE•WORK AI in Finance Summit London took place on 15 September 2026 and dealt with the development and deployment of AI applications in finance.
Upcoming finance and fintech events in Frankfurt and Europe
How much German gold is stored in London?
The Bundesbank reported 432 tonnes of German gold at the Bank of England in August 2017, 12.8 percent of its reserves. It keeps the gold in London because it can exchange it there for foreign currencies within a short time, while half of the reserves lie in Frankfurt.
When does EU equivalence for UK clearing houses end?
The equivalence decision for clearing houses in the UK expires on 30 June 2028, after the Commission extended it in January 2025 by three years. EU firms can use LCH and other UK clearing houses until then, while EMIR 3 moves part of their euro clearing to accounts in the EU.
Frankfurt contacts for teams from London
Finance Loop is a professional network for emerging technologies in finance with more than 4,000 members, built in collaboration with Frankfurt Main Finance and TechQuartier. Finance Loop events in Frankfurt bring visitors from London together with banks, asset managers, supervisors and fintechs in Germany.
A team from London can join a Finance Loop delegation to events such as Frankfurt Digital Finance and get personal introductions from the Finance Loop team. Anyone working in finance, IT or AI can sign up for the free Network Membership.
Frankfurt, London and Finance Loop
Finance Loop runs its events in Frankfurt, where many teams moved from London after Brexit, and brings visitors from the UK together with banks, supervisors and fintechs there. Teams from London can meet Finance Loop members at events in Frankfurt, Munich, Berlin and Hamburg.
Finance Loop is a professional network and has the goal of driving the institutional use of emerging technologies in finance, such as AI, tokenization, stablecoins, and DeFi. Finance Loop helps its members build skills and personal networks in these fields: Investment & Digital Assets, Payments & Digital Money, Digital Infrastructure & Sovereignty, and Risk & Compliance.