A legend of the financial world thinks Brexit could solve a major problem facing the European Union (EU).
Mohamed El-Erian, chief economic adviser to one of the world’s largest financial services companies, Allianz, told a group of money managers in Berlin that Britain had a fundamentally different view of the EU project than other member states.
“There are two fundamental divisions of the EU: There’s the British view — that it’s a super free-trade zone, that it’s a destination,” said El-Erian. “Whereas the Germany-France view is that it’s a means to something else — to an ever closer union. These are fundamentally two very different views on what the EU is about.
“If the referendum [results in the UK remaining in the union], we don’t resolve these different views. It means we are going to have tensions over and over again, because they are pursuing two different objectives, within one institutional agreement. So, ironically, over the longer term, an exit may actually solve one of the basic inconsistencies of the European Union.”
Another giant of European finance, Jim Mellon, came out in support of Brexit Monday, warning the eurozone faced “years of turmoil.” Mellon, who is worth more than $1 billion, is seen by some as prophetic regarding the crash of 2008. (VIDEO: Economist Who Predicted The Great Recession Backs Brexit)
His book “Wake-Up: Survive and Prosper in the Coming Economic Turmoil” warned of a recession sparked by a crisis in the American housing market. Mellon believes the eurozone will break up at some point in the next three to five years.
“In those circumstances I believe Britain is better off outside the European Union,” Mellon said in a YouTube video. He speculates there may be an opportunity to join a reformed EU after the eurozone breaks, but in the meantime, Britain is safer pulling out.
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