Singapore overtakes Hong Kong in list of best financial centres

Singapore and Hong Kong have swapped places in the City of London‘s Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI), sitting in the top five alongside London, New York and Zurich.

Singapore now ranks third in the overall top financial centres list, rising by 26 points, more than any other top 20 centre. It overtakes Hong Kong, which is now in fourth place.

The GFCI questionnaire asked which centres are likely to become more significant in the next few years. People anticipate Asia will challenge the main leading centres the most.

However, in this survey, London takes the top spot, while New York comes in second place and Zurich in fifth.

Dublin is the highest-placed European ‘offshore’ finance centre on the list, ranked 13th out of the 59 international centres listed.

Clustered together, Jersey (14th), Luxembourg (15th) and Guernsey’s (16th) rating scores are split only by decimal places.

The survey found the offshore and niche centres continue to grow in importance. Nine of the GFCI top 25 centres are niche.

It also highlights the fact that tax environment is now being noted as a crucial area of competitiveness by a greater proportion of respondents to the GFCI questionnaire.

In the asset management subsector, specialist centres such as Jersey, Guernsey, Edinburgh and Dublin all move up the rankings compared with the main GFCI, said the report.

Peter Niven, chief executive of Guernsey Finance, said the island’s improved ranking in the main index “reflects the fact that since the last report we have enhanced our offering to clients through the introduction of a new trust law, new company law and new company registry, while also stepping up our promotional and marketing activity both in existing markets like London as well as new jurisdictions such as China.”

Elsewhere in the international arena, Dubai is cited as the place financial companies are most likely to open a new office, despite its current relatively low ranking of 23rd in the GFCI.

The report suggested the rise in importance of Dubai has meant other Middle Eastern countries, including Bahrain (43rd) and Qatar (45th) are also gaining profile.

The GFCI rated 59 financial centres using 57 instrumental factors and 24,014 financial centre assessments, surveying 1,406 financial services professionals.

Of the 59 centres in the GFCI list, 25 have risen in the rankings, while 22 have fallen and 12 remain static, including London and New York.