The world is your oyster Viewpoint careers advice blog

The world is your oyster In a global marketplace, which leading locations should finance graduates and professionals choose when seeking to establish a successful career in banking and finance? Should candidates choose low risk options and move to the traditional financial centres of New York, London and Hong Kong or should they consider alternatives? London and New York remain leading financial centres According to the Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI), in 2014 after seven years at the top, London lost its position as the worlds leading global financial centre to New York. Mark Yeandle, Associate Director at the Z/Yen Group, a commercial think-tank which produces the index, explains that the British capital’s ranking has only declined by one point on a scale of 1,000. This is statistically insignificant, but highlights some ongoing concerns: “Uncertainties remain over London membership of the EU, regulatory creep from Brussels, ineffectiveness of regulations, increased cost of regulation and so on.” The GFCI rankings are calculated by using a total of 105 factors grouped into five broad ‘areas of competitiveness’: business environment, financial sector development, infrastructure, human capital and reputational and general factors. This year, for its 16th edition, the GFCI ratings are down overall and the top 15 financial centres have performed poorly. Only two have increased their ratings: San Francisco, up eight points, and Vancouver, up two. Meanwhile, the top ten western European centres all saw a decline. Mark Yeandle believes this is only a short-term phenomenon: “Respondents are worried about the future and this translates into lower assessments. I do not think that there is a major change or new order taking over, just a temporary decline in the levels of industry confidence.” Hong Kong and Singapore are challenging the status quo Among the top financial centres, Mark notes that both New York and London are likely to retain their leadership for some time. However, in a global marketplace, there is no space for complacency as competition is becoming fiercer. “London and New York were the only top centres and now the interest is split more widely,” he says. Indeed, Hong Kong and Singapore are now occupying the third and fourth place respectively in the GFCI rankings. “Hong Kong benefits from the fact it is close to China. However, Singapore has closed the gap considerably over the last few years, and is tipped to leap frog Hong Kong in the financial services index,” says my Singapore-based colleague Grant Torrens, Senior Manager of Hays Financial Markets. “Singapore is also tipped to become the number one private banking hub in the world by 2020, with its growth far exceeding anywhere else in the world recently.” Singapore, the shining Asian star Grant also points out that Singapore has recently been voted the number one city in the world in terms of ease of business its ninth consecutive win. Furthermore, the top three local banks are consistently rated as the safest banks in the world, which again helps to promote the financial services sector in Singapore as a stable and buoyant one. For expat candidates, Singapore’s good quality of life also makes it an attractive place. In the Mercer Quality of Living Survey, Singapore comes 25th, the highest ranking in Asia, and 8th place globally in the safety rankings. This is well ahead of New York, which scores 44, and London at 38. “Singapore is an ultra-developed nation, where English is widely spoken and is the official business language. It is often referred to as the ‘Gateway to Asia’ and its proximity to the rest of the continent makes it an ideal place for expats to live. Furthermore, Singapore has a very low tax rate, typically between 8% and 15%, and a stable climate. The country prides itself on its multiculturalism, and expats can enjoy and absorb in all that these cultures have to offer,” Grant says. Be part of the conversation. Join our Financial Markets Industry Insights LinkedIn group to share your thoughts and stay up-to-date with the latest financial markets business, employment and recruitment news. Join the conversation