By Simon Jessop and Carolyn Cohn
LONDON (Reuters) - Chicago-based Cboe Global Markets (O:CBOE) will open a European Union stock trading venue in Amsterdam as Britain leaves the bloc, adding to the Dutch city's Brexit spoils.
Success in attracting Cboe Europe, the largest pan-Europe stock exchange by market share, is a major win for Amsterdam and helps counter a trend for banks and funds to pick rival centers such as Frankfurt, Dublin and Luxembourg.
Amsterdam has already won business from venues including Tradeweb and MarketAxess, wooed in part by the city's connectivity speeds. Others, such as the London Stock Exchange's
"We believe that the Netherlands is supportive of competitive and open financial market infrastructure and we feel Amsterdam is a fantastic location to establish our EU venue," Mark Hemsley, president of Cboe Europe, said in a statement.
It also said it had "longstanding and good relations" with the Dutch regulator and central bank, "which have a deep understanding of the equities and derivatives markets".
Cboe, which already has a stake in Amsterdam-based pan-European clearing house EuroCCP, said it had filed an application with the Dutch Authority for the Financial Markets to establish an equities trading venue.
Cboe said it needed to set up the new venue to ensure continued access to European clients after Brexit, but would still operate its existing Registered Investment Exchange in Britain and look to offer similar services on both venues.
The Amsterdam exchange would be staffed by a mix of local hires and staff moved from other locations, a spokeswoman said, without giving further details.
Cboe has around 80 staff in London, Hemsley told Reuters, adding that the exchange picked Amsterdam over Dublin.
The announcement comes as senior British politicians meet on Friday to agree their position on the shape of Britain's future relations with the bloc, and as many financial services firms continue to plan for a collapse in talks.