GFCI 26 Headlines

London hung onto its second place ranking in the Global Financial Centres Index 26, launched today by Z/Yen Group in partnership with the China Development Institute (CDI) in both London and Shenzhen.

New York extended its lead over London to 17 points. Strong performances from other centres, in particular Paris, put London’s second place in the index at risk next time. If London and Paris have similar falls and rises in the ratings for GFCI 27, London would be reduced to a two point lead over Paris and lie behind Shanghai.

The new FinTech index, published for the first time alongside the GFCI, is dominated by Chinese centres taking five of the top seven places in the index, led by Beijing and Shanghai. New York, London, Singapore, San Francisco, and Chicago also feature in the top ten for FinTech.

Trade wars, geopolitical unrest, and Brexit are introducing significant adjustments to medium-term perceptions.

The top 20 centres are shown in the table below.

Other News

• Twelve centres rose 10 or more places in the rankings and ten fell 10 or more places.
• Performance across the index showed slightly reduced confidence, with the overall ratings falling around 2.5% from GFCI 25. Thirty-one of the 104 centres fell in the ratings, including all of the top five centres.
• Seven of the top ten places in the index are now taken by Asia/Pacific centres, continuing the region’s strong performance over recent years.

Leading Centres

• New York retains its first place in the index, extending its lead over London from seven to 17 points. Hong Kong is now only two points behind London. Singapore and Shanghai remain in fourth and fifth position. All five top centres fell in the ratings in GFCI 26.
• London held onto second place in the index, but fell 14 points in the ratings. If London and Paris have similar falls and rises in the ratings in GFCI 27, London would be reduced to a two point lead over Paris and would lie behind Shanghai.
• Shenzhen, Dubai, and Sydney entered the top 10, easing out Toronto, Zurich, and Frankfurt.
• Within the top 30 centres, Paris has performed well, rising 10 places to 17th.

Western Europe

• Following a good performance in GFCI 25, this region had a more mixed performance in GFCI 26, with 15 centres rising in the rankings and 13 falling.

Asia/Pacific

• Asia/Pacific Centres performed well, with 20 of the 27 centres in the region either retaining or improving their position in the rankings. Nanjing entered the index for the first time.
• There were significant rises for Wellington, Mumbai, and Chengdu.

North America

• North American centres had mixed fortunes in GFCI 26, with Canadian centres dropping back following their improved performance in GFCI 25, while US centres generally improved their rankings and ratings.
• Seven out of the ten North American centres in the index are in the top 20.

Eastern Europe & Central Asia

• Nur-Sultan (formerly Astana) retained its top ranking in the Eastern Europe & Central Asia region, consolidating its position despite being a recently-formed financial centre.
• All but two of the 16 centres in the region improved their rating, with nine centres improving their overall ranking.

Middle East & Africa

• Dubai, Casablanca, Tel Aviv, and Doha continued to rise in the index, with Dubai entering the top ten in the world. There were significant improvements for Mauritius, Bahrain, and Nairobi.

Latin America & The Caribbean

• The Bahamas and Buenos Aries performed well in GFCI 26, rising 11 and ten places in the rankings respectively.

Island Centres

• The British Crown Dependencies’ performance dipped, with the Isle of Man down five places in the rankings, Jersey falling 12, and Guernsey continuing its rapid decline in the index, dropping 17 places following its 15-place fall in GFCI 25.

Full details of GFCI 26 can be found at www.globalfinancialcentres.net

Professor Michael Mainelli, Executive Chairman of Z/Yen, said:

"Competition at the top of the GFCI is intensifying. London is in a ‘slipping second’ position globally and a ‘slipping first’ in Europe amidst high volatility emanating from policy uncertainties, Brexit, trade wars, and geopolitical unrest. Asian centres and a resurging Paris are fighting for that second place spot.”

ENDS

Information For Editors

About GFCI 26

GFCI 26 rates 104 financial centres across the world combining assessments from financial professionals with quantitative data which form instrumental factors.

GFCI 26 uses 32,227 financial centre assessments collected from 3,360 financial services professionals who responded to the GFCI online questionnaire. Since 2007 well over 85,000 assessments from over 10,000 respondents have been used to build the index. GFCI is updated regularly and ratings change as assessments and instrumental factors change.

To find out more about sponsorship opportunities, joining the Vantage Financial Centres network, further research, and bespoke reports on individual financial centres, please contact us.

Previous Editions

Previous editions of the GFCI can be accessed at www.longfinance.net/programmes/financialcentrefutures/global-financial-centres-index/publications.html

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Contact

For more information please email Mike Wardle at mike_wardle@zyen.com or by phone on +44 (0) 20 7562 9562 or +44 (0) 7880 737319.