Hong Kong rises to third place globally in Global Financial Centres Index
Hong Kong was ranked first in the Asia-Pacific region and third globally in the Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI) 36 Report, published on 24 September by London-based think-tank Z/Yen and the China Development Institute from Shenzhen.
The biennial GFCI Report assessed 133 financial centres worldwide, of which it ranked 121. Hong Kong ranked third globally with an overall rating of 749, moving up one place from its previous global ranking in March to overtake Singapore. Its overall rating increased by eight points, the largest improvement among the top five financial centres.
New York was rated as the top global financial centres, with London second. San Francisco remained at number five, with Chicago and Los Angeles overtaking Shanghai to place sixth and seventh. Shenzhen and Frankfurt completed the top ten.
Seven Asia-Pacific centres featured in the top 20 in GFCI 36. Outside the top ten, Seoul was ranked at 11, Beijing at 18 and Tokyo at 20. Rankings in the region were relatively stable, although Sydney, Nanjing, and Tianjin fell 10 places or more. Kuala Lumpur was the only centre in the region to improve more than 10 places.
Hong Kong’s scores were rated among the top in various areas of competitiveness, including ‘business environment’, ‘human capital’, ‘infrastructure’ and ‘reputational and general’. Hong Kong’s rankings in various financial industry sectors also rose significantly, including ‘investment management’, ‘insurance’, ‘banking’ and ‘professional services’.
Among these, the ranking in ‘investment management’ advanced to first globally. In addition, the report assessed the financial centres’ fintech offerings, and Hong Kong’s ranking rose five places to ninth, making it among the top 10 fintech hubs.
“It comes as no surprise to me that Hong Kong not only ranks as Asia’s top financial centre, but also ranks third globally,” said Alan Fong, Managing Director of Sovereign Trust (Hong Kong). “The SAR government has been proactive by taking measures to help boost the economy and the financial sector since travel restrictions were lifted in April of last year, and the results of these initiatives are bearing fruit.”
“We have seen improved sentiment towards the stock market, solid growth in the asset and wealth management industry, along with an increase in the number of proposed initial public offerings (IPOs) on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX). As someone on the ground in Hong Kong, I’ve been amazed at the transformation. Our next challenge is to help Hong Kong become the number one global financial centre.”
