German car maker Volkswagen is weighing an application for a full UK banking licence to ensure that it can carry on providing car loans after Brexit.
VW's UK arm currently uses a German-issued banking licence granted to its parent company but could see this arrangement upended if passporting rules are altered by Brexit.
With a loan book in the UK standing at £15 billion, VW is keen to ensure that it can keep operating, stating that it "faces risks from Brexit, the most important of which is the future of the EU bank passporting system".
David Maloney, CEO, Volkswagen Financial Services UK, told the Financial Times that if an application for a banking licence went ahead it would "diversify our funding sources whilst helping to alleviate post-Brexit uncertainty and ensure we continue to provide lending products".