Mapped: The Top Global Financial Centers in 2023
This graphic shows the top global financial centers in 2023, based on rankings from the consultancy group Z/Yen.
How Cities Were Ranked
To analyze the strength of each financial center, Z/Yen looked at the following areas of competitiveness:
- Financial Sector Development
- Business Environment
- Human Capital
- Infrastructure
- Reputation
Each of these categories has four subcomponents, which altogether arrive at a cities score.
The World’s Leading Financial Centers
In 2023, New York remained the epicenter for global finance. With $46 trillion in stock market capitalization, it captures 40% of the world’s total, thanks to the depth and liquidity of its markets. Domestic and international companies look to list on its exchanges due to their broad investor base.
Roughly 330,000 people work in financial services, however, financial firms are increasingly moving out of the city. Since the end of 2019, $993 billion in assets across 158 companies have moved headquarters driven by lower taxes in other states.
London ranked second given its role as an investment banking and foreign-exchange trading hub. While it remains a dominant center, international banking has waned since Brexit as business has shifted to the euro area.
With a population of six million people, Singapore fell in third. Its diplomatic neutrality allows Asian and Western companies to conduct business in the country, operating as the “Switzerland of Asia”. Tech giants from Google to Alibaba have their regional headquarters based in the commerce hub.