New York Maintains Podium Position as World’s Top Financial Centre

New York has once again topped London as the world’s leading financial center, according to a survey of nearly 300 financial services professionals commissioned by Kinetic Partners, the global professional services firm.

The annual survey, which draws on the perspectives provided by survey respondents across the financial services and regulatory world, reveals that 59% of those polled see New York as the leading financial center, compared to 38% who believe it to be London. Looking forward, only 28% of those working in the financial services industry believe that London will be considered the world’s pre-eminent global financial center in five years’ time.

The survey for Kinetic Partners’ 2015 Global Regulatory Outlook report sees the proportion of respondents citing London as the leading financial center drop from 44% last year to 38% this year. This figure is even starker when viewed alongside the same benchmarking survey two years ago, which revealed that 65% of respondents believed London to be the leading financial center. Concerning the future of the industry, 46% of total respondents – and 53% of c-suite respondents – expect New York to lead the financial world in 2019.

Allison Gill, Director on Kinetic Partners’ Regulatory Compliance team in New York, commented:
“The debate over the relevance and benefit of the seemingly never-ending barrage of regulation will continue, but the fact remains that the industry has largely adapted and the global community still has confidence in the importance of New York.”

Julian Korek, CEO and Founding Partner of Kinetic Partners, said:
“This shift from just two years ago is a testament to the resilience of the New York market. Despite uncertainty following the 2008 crisis, New York has proven that it can draw and maintain institutions that believe it is the best place to grow their businesses.”

When asked to name the leading emerging financial center in 2019, over half (53%) of respondents cited Shanghai (up from 48% of respondents from last year’s survey named Shanghai as the main contender), while just 9% mention Dubai, the second most popular choice.

Korek continues:
“Given the rise of Hong Kong in the industry, as well as a fast growing, but lesser known, financial services center in Shenzhen, China’s model for developing hotbeds for financial expertise may be copied in similar countries if it proves successful. However, firms should assess any investment against their global business plans and compliance infrastructures. They must ask themselves: what are the realistic returns for the Chinese opportunity? And how might the slowly emerging clarity about the investment and regulatory regime impact the outlook for its future as a leading financial center?”