LONDON, Oct 12 (Reuters) - Citigroup said its private bank is to set up a booking centre in Luxembourg to ensure it can continue to serve European Union clients after Britain leaves the bloc in 2019.
Citi currently operates its European private banking operations out of London, but UK finance firms may lose their ability to sell their services to EU clients unless the British government manages to strike a deal with the bloc.
"The decision is based on what is best for our clients and what will allow us to continue to service our clients without any disruption," a spokeswoman for Citi said in a statement on Thursday.
The U.S. bank has already said it will headquarter its EU trading operations in Frankfurt after Brexit, and has also applied for a licence for its markets business in France.
(Reporting by Rachel Armstrong; editing by Carolyn Cohn)