German investment bank Joh. Berenberg Gossler & Co. KG
Dave Mortlock, global head of investment banking and head of the bank's London office, told The Daily Telegraph that Berenberg's existing operations in Germany will enable it to continue doing business across the EU regardless of the outcome of the Brexit trade talks, and that there was "no obvious reason" for the bank to reshape at all.
"If other firms leave [the U.K.], we have the opportunity to attract their best talent," Mortlock reportedly said.
He said in a Feb. 5 earnings release that Berenberg would look to more than double its number of corporate brokerships to 50 by the end of 2018, noting as well that it has an "encouraging IPO pipeline for 2018." Mortlock added that Berenberg had increased the number of its equity analysts in London from by 22% to 122 in 2017, as well as the number of stocks under coverage by 136 to 770.
Following the implementation of the EU's revised Markets in Financial Instruments Directive, or MiFID II, Mortlock said the bank saw an increase in demand for equities analysis, which is the biggest part of its work in London, the Telegraph noted.
In the U.S., Berenberg is moving into new offices in New York as part of its plan to triple its headcount in the country to 150. The bank has increased the number of U.S. stocks under coverage to 97, and it aims to triple this figure within two years, Mortlock said.
Berenberg reported full-year 2017 net profit of €90 million, down from €161 million in the year-ago period which included a one-off gain on the sale of its share in Universal Investment in 2016. Equities revenue rose 69% year over year to €240 million.
