Global investment banks Standard Chartered Plc, , Bank ofAmerica Merrill Lynch, JP MorganChase & Co. and Morgan Stanley have pledged to help London retain itsspot as a world leading financial center following the U.K.'s decision to leavethe EU.

Executives of the five banks made the declaration after ameeting with U.K. Chancellor George Osborne on July 7. was added as asignatory later in the day.

Meanwhile, London also received support from the Swissbankers association, whose president, Patrick Odier, proposed an "F4"alliance among Switzerland, London, Hong Kong and Singapore to make it easierto negotiate issues surrounding access to EU markets, the Financial Times reported July 7. The U.K. faces losing"passporting" rights for firms based there to do business in the EU followingthe Brexit vote.

"Coordinating our efforts would make it easier andquicker to discuss issues and come to solutions over challenges with theEU," Odier said.

BofA Merrill Lynch is the marketing name for the globalbanking and global markets business of Bank of America Corp.