Morgan Stanley is already strengthening its trading business in Frankfurt

Morgan Stanley has chosen Frankfurt. In July last year, Bloomberg reported that Morgan Stanley picked Frankfurt for its new EU post-Brexit trading hub, with the potential movement of 200 jobs. Nine months later, there are signs that something's underway.

The U.S. bank is currently advertising 20 jobs in Frankfurt. Most are in the middle and back office, but many reflect the need to build local infrastructure functions to support an expanded Frankfurt trading floor. They include, for example, a "Trade Support Associate", a "Team Manager Trading Operations Control", and various positions in risk management and regulation.

Most interestingly, Morgan Stanley is recruiting a Frankfurt-based 'head of EU institutional group product operations,' to manage the operational side of its Frankfurt trading business. There are indications that the bank might be struggling to fill its Frankfurt vacancies, however: the head of EU institutional product operations vacancy has already been open for three months. Morgan Stanley declined to comment.

Morgan Stanley's Frankfurt recruitment follows last week's news that Goldman Sachs is shifting over a dozen U.K.-based trading and banking staff to the German city.

In January, Morgan Stanley president Colm Kelleher said the bank will have a "multi-centered approach " after Brexit, with operations in Frankfurt, Paris and Dublin. Dublin is expected to get asset management, while Frankfurt will get sales and trading. Kelleher said decisions will be made on job moves early this year.

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