Bank of England says it is open to pro-growth bank reforms

LONDON (Reuters) -The Bank of England (BoE) is open to discussions with Britain's government about new ways to help boost economic growth by paring back regulatory requirements for the financial services industry, Deputy Governor Sam Woods said on Monday.

With incoming U.S. President Donald Trump expected to slash rules for U.S. banks, financial regulators elsewhere are under pressure to relax their approaches.

In a letter to Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Woods said the BoE was already working on five areas that could help the government's pro-growth programme, including simplifying post-Brexit rules for small banks and encouraging insurers to invest in British assets.

"Beyond these five areas, we would like to explore with colleagues in HM Treasury and the Department of Business and Trade whether there are wider changes which could help to simplify and rationalise the UK regulatory regime or support UK growth in other ways," Woods said in the letter dated Jan. 15.

Such changes could include the creation of a "concierge service" for foreign investors, paring back the BoE's regulatory principles including on climate change and avoiding overlap of governance and disclosure requirements, he said.

The BoE's thinking on those changes was "less developed" and it would welcome discussions with the government to see if they were worth pursuing, Woods concluded.

Woods said earlier this month that Britain should avoid participating in a "race to the bottom" on financial regulation, amid concerns the United States might opt out of reforms designed to strengthen the world's banking system.

(Reporting by William Schomberg; Editing by Catarina Demony and William James)