Holland Financial Centre calls it a day, citing lack of political support

The Holland Financial Centre, an organisation set up five years ago to promote the Netherlands as a banking and finance hub, is to cease operations in its present form.

The news comes two days after its chairman Sjoerd van Keulen resigned because of his role in the downfall of financial services group SNS Reaal which was nationalised on Friday.

In a short statement on its website, the HFC said: ‘The finance minister and the political party finance spokesmen have said they no longer consider the public-private partnership … to be desirable, because this gives the appearance of a blurring of roles between the private sector, regulators and government.’

This removes an important part of the platform, ruling out the continuation of the organisation in its present form. Some activities will be continued, the statement said.

The centre was funded by Amsterdam city council and national government to the tune of some €5.5m. Private companies were also able to join for a fee of €25,000, according to media reports.

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