Goldman Sachs' latest move follows reports last month that the Wall Street giant may move up to 1,000 of its staff out of London in response to Britain's vote to leave the European Union.

A decision by Goldman Sachs Investment Partners to fold its London operations into the US - rumoured by media to be potentially Brexit-related - was in fact made to "simplify" the team's research and trading activities, a source familiar with the matter told WealthBriefing, adding that the move will impact eight people's careers.

GSIP opened shop in 2008 with $7 billion in assets, one of the largest launches in hedge fund history.

The eight members of the London-based investment team have been given the opportunity to transfer to the Battery Park City headquarters of Goldman Sachs in New York or relocate internally, a source familiar with the matter told this publication. 

However, the majority of the staff are unlikely to make the jump across the pond. 

“It is likely that very few will actually move [to New York],” the source said.

The move to merge the team's operations was triggered by managing director Nick Advani, who spearheaded the hedge fund's London operations before stepping down from the helm last June, the source said, adding that GSIP chose the New York office to consolidate its London team into due to increased “efficiency”.

“The move has been considered in the past, so it's not exactly 'new'. The decision was made because it simplifies research and trading activities. New York was regarded as a better choice for the main office because of its global investment reach,” the source said. 

Commenting officially on the matter, Goldman Sachs said: “This is a discrete decision for reasons specific to GSIP, one investment team within Goldman Sachs, and shouldn’t be construed as anything but that.” 

Another managing director, Raluca Ragab, who had been leading the London team since Advani stepped down, is said to be leaving the firm once the transition is complete.

Separately, Goldman Sachs may move up to 1,000 staff out of London in response to Britain's divorce from the European Union, it was reported last month.