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Vitol to Move European Gas, Power Trading to Geneva From London
2010-08-04 16:41:36.564 GMT
By Ben Farey
Aug. 4 (Bloomberg) -- Vitol Group, the world's largest
independent oil trader, will move its European natural-gas and
power operations to Geneva from London, the company said.
"Geneva has always been a center of trading for the Vitol
Group and the time has come to reallocate resources for
strategic reasons," Vitol said today in an e-mailed statement.
The Swiss financial center has been touted as a haven for
London bankers and traders after the U.K. increased the top rate
of income tax and raised the rate of capital gains tax.
"There's a trickle of people moving to Geneva as opposed
to a flood," Jonathan Whitehead, managing director, head of
EMEA Commodity Sales & Structuring in London at investment bank
Barclays Capital, said in a phone interview. It's surprising
more commodity traders haven't left London, he said.
About 20 people will transfer from London and the move
will be completed early next year, according to the Vitol
statement. There are no plans to move other teams to Geneva,
Vitol said.
For Related News and Information:
Top Gas Stories: TGAS <GO>
U.K. Gas Prices: UGAS <GO>
--Editors: Rob Verdonck, Raj Rajendran
To contact the reporter on this story:
Ben Farey in London at +44-20-7673-2369 or
bfarey@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story:
Stephen Voss on +44-20-7073-3520 or sev@bloomberg.net
