Shell’s Dutch departure is a vote of confidence in Brexit Britain

The City was meant to be hollowed out. Shortages would cripple the economy. And major multinationals would move their headquarters, listings, and all the wealth those create, to somewhere safely inside the EU’s Single Market.

Some hardcore supporters of the UK remaining inside the EU made lots of predictions about the consequences of the decision to leave. And yet, one by one, they have failed to materialise. Now, oil giant Shell has said it will move its tax residency to London, a decision that could mean it ditches the ‘Royal Dutch’ from its name.

Shell has, alongside Unilever, long been one of the giants of Anglo-Dutch capitalism. The product of a 1907 merger between Royal Dutch Petroleum and Britain’s Shell Transport & Trading, its shares were listed in both Amsterdam and London, and its management split between the two countries.