The European Banking Authority (EBA), the EU’s banking watchdog, has criticised lenders for not informing customers how they could be affected by Brexit.

In a statement released yesterday, the EBA highlighted that it had found “little evidence of financial institutions communicating effectively to their customers on how they may be affected by the UK withdrawal”.

In June, the EBA made a similar statement when it urged banks to speed up Brexit contingency planning, labelling the preparations as “inadequate”.

However, though yesterday’s statement admitted there was “continued progress in contingency planning”, it urged financial institutions to maintain efforts in this regard.

Banks have set about obtaining new licenses to continue operations across the EU, relocating their businesses to various cities including Frankfurt and Amsterdam, and changing mechanisms to allow for data transfers between June and now.

“The EBA is therefore calling on all financial institutions affected by the UK withdrawal from the EU, directly or indirectly, to take the EBA June Opinion into careful consideration, and on that basis to engage with their customers and provide adequate information on the risks and mitigating measures being taken,” the watchdog said in its statement.

The authority has urged customers to contact their financial institutions directly, should they have “concerns about whether they may be impacted by the UK withdrawal from the EU and that have not been contacted by their financial service provides by the end of 2018”.

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