A city should have several key characteristics to be considered a financial hub. The city should be strategically located, enabling people to easily pass through from around the world. These cities also have reputed stock exchanges, leading financial institutions, and many private and public banks. Below we will go through the world’s top financial cities and discuss what makes them so influential in the financial industry.

London, England

First up is London, which has been one of the top cities to facilitate trade and business on a global scale for hundreds of years. The city is still one of the most visited places in the entire world and is ranked highly out of the top locations for people to do business. It is a well-known hub for bond and foreign exchange trading, insurance services, and banking activities. The number of people that trade forex in London has increased significantly over recent years. This is thought to be mainly attributed to technological advancements and increased accessibility to smartphones and the internet.

The Bank of England, the United Kingdom’s central bank, is found in London and is the second oldest central bank in the entire world. It plays a vital role in controlling the monetary system of the whole country by regulating the release of currency notes into circulation. The London Stock Exchange is also found in the city and ranks number two in the largest European stock exchanges list. In addition to this, London is also home to The London Bullion Market, the largest market for silver and gold trading in the world.

Singapore, Republic of Singapore

What makes Singapore such an attractive city for business is mainly the transparency of the legal framework and its political and economic stability. Despite limited resources and land, Singapore has managed to create a thriving economy specializing in various industries, including biomedical sciences, electronics, petroleum refining, chemicals, and mechanical engineering.

As a city, Singapore is one of the leaders in wealth and insurance management and has a robust workforce fueling the economy’s growth. A large proportion of the population in Singapore are people of Indian, Chinese, and Malay origin making it a diverse city that attracts people from all around the world.

Zurich, Switzerland

Zurich is known around the world for being a massive player in the world of finance. It is the biggest city in the country of Switzerland. However, its size does not account for the vast number of banks and financial institutions located in the city. Thanks to the low tax regime, Zurich has become a hub for asset management and insurance companies, which has made it a super attractive place to invest. This has resulted in Zurich attracting a high volume of companies from all around the world.

The SIX Swiss Exchange, Switzerland’s principal stock exchange located in Zurich, has a market capitalization of around $1.4 trillion, making it one of the biggest around the globe. Zurich has a flourishing economy with many jobs in the finance sector, fueling a powerful environment for business. It has also become recognized as one of the safest and cleanest cities to work and live in Europe and the world.

New York City, United States of America

When it comes to the world’s leading finance cities, a list is not complete without mentioning New York City. It is widely accepted as the world’s finance capital and has a long history of being a hub for business and finance. New York City is home to the NYSE, the world’s biggest stock exchange by market capitalization. It is also home to one of the most famous streets in the world, Wall Street, which is known for being the center of stock market trading in the NYSE.

The workforce and population of New York City are diverse and made up of people from different cultures across the world. Some of the world’s biggest companies are also found in the city, including the Fortune 1000 and the Fortune 500, as well as some of the largest banks in the world: Morgan Stanley, JP Morgan, Merrill Lynch, and Goldman Sachs. In finance and business, it is hard not to mention New York City.

Conclusion

A lot of the financial hubs found across the world held their position for many years. However, new competition has shifted the balance threatening their positions on the economic ladder. Although some cities mentioned above are the world’s leading financial hubs, many other cities have become major financial centers, including Seoul, Geneva, Luxembourg, and Toronto.