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Shenzhen in world’s top 10 financial centres for first time since 2010 while Hong Kong stays in third place just behind London

  • Hong Kong moving closer to London as concerns over Brexit mount
  • Shenzhen jumped five places to rank in the top 10 globally

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Resident buildings and offices are seen in Shenzhen, which has returned to the top 10 ranking of global financial centres for the first time since March 2010. Photo: Reuters
Chad Bray

Shenzhen jumped higher in the latest ranking of the world’s financial centres, while Hong Kong moved closer to overtaking London as number two globally, according to a semi-annual survey by the China Development Institute and the London think tank Z/Yen Partners.

New York retained the top spot in this year’s Global Financial Centres Index, extending its lead over London by 17 points. Hong Kong remained in third place, but was just two points behind London as concerns mount over the economic effect of the United Kingdom’s plan to leave the European Union as soon as the end of October, known as Brexit.

Shenzhen, a technology hub and key cog in the Greater Bay Area economic development plan, moved up five places to ninth globally. Shenzhen was in the top 10 in the survey released in September 2009 and in March 2010 and has been out of the top 10 since. The survey began in 2007 and Shenzhen first appeared in September 2009.Shenzhen counts web giant Tencent Holdings and telecommunications companies Huawei Technologies and ZTE among its tech titans.

“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,” Michael Mainelli, executive chairman of Z/Yen, said. “Asian centres and a resurging Paris are fighting for that second place spot.”

The index ranks 104 financial centres across the world, using assessments from 3,360 financial professionals, as well as quantitative data provided by the World Bank, the Economist Intelligence Unit, the United Nations and other third parties. Nearly half of the respondents were from Asia-Pacific.

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