London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Jul 15, 2025

Hong Kong rises to fourth place in global financial centre rankings

Hong Kong rises to fourth place in global financial centre rankings

Hong Kong rose two places in this year’s Global Financial Centres Index, but is yet to fully recover from the impact of the social unrest in 2019, study shows.

Hong Kong improved its standing among global financial centres in a newly released study, thanks to the popularity of its stock market and many cross-border trading schemes with mainland China, officials said.

Hong Kong ranked fourth in the 29th edition of the Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI) report, which is published by City of London’s think tank Z/Yen Group in partnership with the Shenzhen-based research firm China Development Institute. New York maintained its top spot, followed by London and Shanghai.

Singapore came in fifth and Beijing sixth. Tokyo dropped three places from fourth to seventh.

“We are encouraged by the fact that Hong Kong has consistently been ranked among the top financial centres in the world since Global Financial Centres Index’s debut in 2007,” said Laurence Li Lu-jen, chairman of Financial Services Development Council, a Hong Kong government-funded body tasked with promoting the sector.

Laurence Li Lu-jen, chairman of Financial Services Development Council.


Li credited Hong Kong’s rise in the latest index to market participants who believe in the hub’s “strong connectivity with mainland China
and other Asian markets, its business-friendly environment with sound legal and regulatory framework as well as ease of doing business and its efficient financial infrastructure.”

The city fell three places to the sixth in March 2020 as business sentiment was affected by the months-long anti-government protests triggered by the now-withdrawn extradition bill in June 2019. It was ranked fifth in September 2020.

The ranking, released twice a year in March and September, is based on a global online survey of over 10,774 respondents, who evaluate 126 cities on five areas of competitiveness.

While Hong Kong ranked fourth in terms of business environment, human capital, infrastructure and reputation, it ranked fifth in financial sector development, said Mike Wardle, director and head of indices of Z/Yen Group, one of the authors of the report.

“The achievement for Hong Kong is that it is firmly established among the leading world financial centres in a very competitive system. We expect this to continue to be the case going forward,” Wardle said.

Hong Kong’s main board ranked second last year after Nasdaq, with companies raising over US$50 billion from IPOs, a year-on-year jump of 27 per cent. The city carried out a listing reform in 2018 to allow tech companies with weighted voting rights and pre-revenue biotech firms to list.

“Hong Kong’s financial markets have indeed performed very well over the last year,” Christopher Hui Ching-yu, Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury told a webinar on Wednesday, where he was joined by the authors of the report. “Despite challenges and uncertainties presented by the Covid-19 pandemic, our markets demonstrated resilience and robust performance in terms of IPO funds raised and trading volume.”

“Not only is Hong Kong a preferred international fundraising platform now, but it is also the world’s second largest fundraising hub for biotech companies,” Hui said.

A total of 43 companies have raised a combined US$54 billion under the new listing regime. This includes Alibaba Group Holding, the owner of this newspaper, which raised US$12.9 billion from its secondary listing in November 2019.

The trend continues this year with search engine Baidu launching a secondary share sale this week.

Hui said the stock exchange plans to conduct a study to expand the listing reform to allow more US-listed Chinese companies to qualify for secondary listings and special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs), also known as the blank cheque companies, to list here.

Other proposals currently under consideration include cross-border trading schemes such as the ETF connect, wealth management connect and the south bound link of the bond connect.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
South African Police Minister Suspended Amid Organised Crime Allegations
Nvidia CEO Claims Chinese Military Reluctance to Use US AI Technology
Hong Kong Advances Digital Asset Strategy to Address Economic Challenges
Australia Rules Out Pre‑commitment of Troops, Reinforces Defence Posture Amid US‑China Tensions
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
U.S. Resumes Deportations to Third Countries After Supreme Court Ruling
Excavation Begins at Site of Mass Grave for Children at Former Irish Institution
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Defends Attorney General Pam Bondi Amid Epstein Memo Backlash
Renault Shares Drop as CEO Luca de Meo Announces Departure Amid Reports of Move to Kering
Senior Aides for King Charles and Prince Harry Hold Secret Peace Summit
Anti‑Semitism ‘Normalised’ in Middle‑Class Britain, Says Commission Co‑Chair
King Charles Meets David Beckham at Chelsea Flower Show
If the Department is Really About Justice: Ghislaine Maxwell Should Be Freed Now
NYC Candidate Zohran Mamdani’s ‘Antifada’ Remarks Spark National Debate on Political Language and Economic Policy
President Trump Visits Flood-Ravaged Texas, Praises Community Strength and First Responders
From Mystery to Meltdown, Crisis Within the Trump Administration: Epstein Files Ignite A Deepening Rift at the Highest Levels of Government Reveals Chaos, Leaks, and Growing MAGA Backlash
Trump Slams Putin Over War Death Toll, Teases Major Russia Announcement
Reparations argument crushed
Rainmaker CEO Says Cloud Seeding Paused Before Deadly Texas Floods
A 92-year-old woman, who felt she doesn't belong in a nursing home, escaped the death-camp by climbing a gate nearly 8 ft tall
French Journalist Acquitted in Controversial Case Involving Brigitte Macron
Elon Musk’s xAI Targets $200 Billion Valuation in New Fundraising Round
Kraft Heinz Considers Splitting Off Grocery Division Amid Strategic Review
Trump Proposes Supplying Arms to Ukraine Through NATO Allies
EU Proposes New Tax on Large Companies to Boost Budget
Trump Imposes 35% Tariffs on Canadian Imports Amid Trade Tensions
Junior Doctors in the UK Prepare for Five-Day Strike Over Pay Disputes
US Opens First Rare Earth Mine in Over 70 Years in Wyoming
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
Bitcoin Reaches New Milestone of $116,000
Biden’s Doctor Pleads the Fifth to Avoid Self-Incrimination on President’s Medical Fitness
Grok Chatbot Faces International Backlash for Antisemitic Content
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
NVIDIA Achieves Historic Milestone as First Company Valued at $4 Trillion
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Linda Yaccarino Steps Down as CEO of X After Two Years
×