Brussels new European finance hub against the background of the Brexit?
The Japanese insurer MS Amlin, subsidiary of the Mitsui Sumimoto & AD group, one of the world's top ten insurance companies, has decided to open a European subsidiary in Brussels (Belgium). They will hence join Lloyd's and QBE, which already took a similar decision to establish an European subsidiary in Brussels.
Amlin Insurance Societas Europaea SE (AISE) CEO Kim Hvirgel motivates the decision to settle in Brussels by the choice of the British to leave the European Union, but also "because of its business-friendly financial centre, high-quality regulatory framework and geographical position in Europe". This strategic move “ensures MS Amlin’s European brokers and clients experience no disruption from the UK's exit from the EU”.
This decision by MS Amlin has received significant media coverage in Belgium and abroad. Brussels is aiming to promote itself as one of the top European finance hubs, following the uncertainty of the Brexit. This topic is high on the agenda of the Belgian finance minister.
The supervision of financial institutions in Belgium is organized according to a “Twin-Peaks” model, by which the competences are shared between two autonomous supervisors: the National Bank of Belgium (NBB) and the Financial Services and Markets Authority (FSMA). Each regulator has a specific set of objectives. For insurance companies, the NBB is the principal prudential supervisor both on macro and micro-level. Furthermore, the FSMA is responsible inter alia for supervising insurance intermediaries, the compliance with the rules of conduct and the marketing of insurance products to the general public.
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