SINGAPORE (Bloomberg) - The British pound fell toward an eight-week low on concern Britain. will vote to leave the European Union.

Four polls from three companies have put the "Leave" campaign gaining ground against "Remain" before the June 23 referendum. A gauge of one-month volatility climbed to the highest since 2008 as traders prepare themselves for the financial turbulence that may happen after the vote.

Sterling lost 0.5 percent to US$1.4204 as of 9:05 a.m. Tuesday Tokyo time. It reached US$1.4116 on Monday, the weakest level since April 14. Implied volatility for one-month options on the pound versus the dollar rose to 28.55 per cent on Monday. That's more than three times the level at the end of last year.

Two new polls by ICM, which published both phone and online surveys, showed the "Leave" side opening up a 5 percentage-point lead over "Remain." Then came a YouGov online survey showing "Leave" at 46 per cent with "Remain" at 39 per cent, and an ORB poll putting "Leave" at 49 per cent and "Remain" at 48 per cent among those certain to vote.