The 27 EU member states have spurned a proposal by the City of London to include financial services in a free trade deal with Britain.
Sterling slid against the euro and dollar on the news.
The City proposal was to allow cross-border trade in financial services between the UK and EU post Brexit while keeping to the best international regulatory standards.
EU officials rejected proposals for Britain to maintain access to EU markets while also leaving the single market regime.
City nervousness about Brexit worsened further yesterday when Morgan Stanley said it would expand offices in three European cities as it relocates from London following Brexit.
Morgan Stanley president Colm Kelleher told a conference in Dublin on Wednesday that the company wanted clarity on the Brexit transition by Easter.
The company could not yet say how many of its London jobs would go as a result of Brexit.
Kelleher said: “I have no idea what’s going to happen. I’m hoping that common sense prevails.”
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