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Bloomberg
Coutts & Co., the private UK bank that counts Queen Elizabeth II among its clients, has warned customers within the European Economic Area (EEA) that it can no longer offer them mortgages due to Brexit.
The lender, owned by Natwest Group Plc, will lose so-called passporting rights that allow it to operate freely within the EEA if the current Brexit transition period expires on December 31 with no formal agreement between the European Union and the UK, according to an email to clients seen by Bloomberg. As the UK last month ignored a deadline to extend the transition period, the bank has stopped accepting lending applications from the EEA, it said.
Coutts is writing to a small number of clients impacted by the changes to allow them time to make alternative banking arrangements, a spokesman said.
for the bank said by email. The lender remains committed to international clients outside the EEA and within the UK, the spokesman said.