Hong Kong is the highest-ranked financial center among them, placing third in the 39th edition of the Global Financial Centres Index released Thursday.
The index, published twice a year by London-based think tank Z/Yen Partners and the China Development Institute in Shenzhen, assesses 137 financial hubs based on 147 instrumental factors drawn from third-party sources, including the World Bank, the OECD and the United Nations. It also included 34,468 assessments from 5,218 respondents to its online questionnaire.
Across five key areas of competitiveness, Hong Kong secured second place worldwide in human capital and reputational & general, and ranked third in business environment, infrastructure and financial sector development.
It also led several key industry sectors globally, including banking, insurance and financial services, according to the South China Morning Post.
Two other Chinese cities also made the top 10. Shanghai rose to sixth from eighth in the previous edition last September while Shenzhen took the ninth spot.
Singapore followed closely behind Hong Kong, coming in fourth worldwide. The Southeast Asian country took third in reputation & general, and held fourth position across the remaining categories.
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Passers-by hold their mobile phones as people take a selfie photo using a smartphone, with Singapore’s central business district skyline, in Singapore, May 10, 2019. Photo by Reuters |
“Singapore benefits from a strong local talent base supported by a world-class education system and continuous professional development,” said a director for product and business development at a fintech firm in the city-state, as quoted in the report.
“However, the relatively high bar for foreign employment visas and high cost of living may also pose challenges in attracting specialized international talent, particularly in highly competitive and fast-evolving sectors such as FinTech.”
The other Asia-Pacific entries in the top 10 were South Korea’s Seoul, which climbed two spots to eighth, and Japan’s Tokyo, which advanced five places to 10th.
Seoul credited its improvement to rising foreign investment and the growth of its fintech sector. The global popularity of Korean culture also helped boost the city’s international profile, according to the city’s analysis cited by Korea JoongAng Daily.
Globally, New York and London held the top two positions, respectively. San Francisco secured fifth place while Dubai came in seventh, rounding out the top 10.
Other Southeast Asian names on the list
Out of 137 financial centers assessed, 120 were included in the main index while 17 were classified as associate centers after receiving insufficient assessments.
Though Singapore was the only Southeast Asian entry in the top 10, six other locations from the region appeared further down the main index.
Malaysia’s Kuala Lumpur and Labuan came in 42nd and 55th, respectively, with Kuala Lumpur moving up three places and Labuan advancing five from the previous edition.
Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City stood at 84th, rising from 95th, while Indonesia’s Jakarta ranked 86th, up five spots.
Thailand’s Bangkok was listed at 100th and the Philippines’ Manila at 102nd, both improving by two positions.
Another Southeast Asian city was also listed among the associate centers: Vietnam’s Da Nang, which received 134 assessments, below the 150 needed to qualify for the main index.
