London 'overtakes New York' as world's top financial centre

London
By Isabelle Bell

23 September 2015

London has won back the crown from New York as the world's leading financial centre, according to a global study.

New York is now ranked second according to the Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI) survey, followed by Hong Kong, Singapore and Tokyo in the top five.

The report said that London's assessment as a financial centre has been higher since the general election in May this year.

The GFCI survey ranks 84 financial centres according to five areas of competitiveness, including business environment, infrastructure and human capital.

The top 10 is dominated by cities in Asia and North America. Toronto (8th) is the highest ranked North American city after New York.

The highest overall rise in rankings was for Warsaw in Poland, which rose from 64th place to 38th place. Osaka, Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro also saw significant rises.

The biggest fall in rankings was Riyadh in Saudi Arabia, which fell 43 spots from 14 to 57. Jakarta, Monaco and Mexico City also saw substantial falls.

The top 20 global financial centres

CitySeptember 2015March 2015
London12
New York21
Hong Kong33
Singapore44
Tokyo55
Seoul67
Zurich76
Toronto811
San Francisco98
Washington DC1012
Chicago119
Boston1210
Geneva1313
Frankfurt1419
Sydney1521
Dubai1623
Montreal1718
Vancouver1815
Luxembourg1917
Osaka2031

Western European financial centres are showing signs of recovery, with Frankfurt (14th) now overtaking Luxembourg (19th) in the rankings. After London, Zurich was the highest ranked European city (7th).

In the Pacific region, Sydney is now ranked 15th, a rise of six places, while Melbourne is 27th.

The financial centres likely to become more significant within the next 24 months

  1. Singapore
  2. Shanghai
  3. Casablanca
  4. Busan
  5. Hong Kong
  6. Gibraltar
  7. Dalian
  8. Luxembourg
  9. Seoul
  10. Dubai
  11. Shenzhen
  12. Beijing
  13. Doha
  14. Istanbul
  15. Almaty

Topics

  • Business

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