The decision by Unilever to list its ice-cream offshoot, including Magnum and Ben & Jerry’s, in Amsterdam is a big snub to the Chancellor Rachel Reeves and the City.
The stamp duty on share trading, which raises £3billion a year, is seen by senior investment bankers as a big hurdle which places London at disadvantage.
Scars of the great financial crisis have never fully healed and the mad competition for ABN Amro, when Royal Bank of Scotland (now NatWest) outbid Barclays for the Dutch bank, had disastrous consequences that linger still.
For investors without scruple, British American Tobacco shares, up nearly 30 per cent over the last year, have long been a reliable source of income and, with a market valuation of £66.5billion, a FTSE stalwart.
Frozen out: The decision by Unilever to list its Magnum-to-Ben & Jerry's ice-cream offshoot in Amsterdam is a big snub to the Chancellor Rachel Reeves and the City.
