New York draws even with London as finance center
LONDON — London and New York hold equal first place in a ranking of global financial centers after the British capital lost its primary ranking because of concern over higher taxes and tighter regulations, according to a report.
London’s score fell 15 points to allow New York to close the gap since the last study was published in September, according to Friday’s report, compiled by Z/Yen for the City of London Corp.
“Retaining a fair, consistent and predictable tax policy and supervisory environment is critical to retaining London’s role as a global center for a large range of financial services,” Stuart Fraser, chairman of City’s policy and resources committee, said in the report.
London and New York were described as “the twin sister-cities of world finance,” holding a competitive advantage over rivals.
The British government is raising the top rate of income tax to 50 percent next month, making it more expensive for residents earning more than $1.5 million annually than New York or Hong Kong. Britain is opposing European Union plans to impose a ban on naked credit-default swaps and to introduce new rules for hedge fund and private equity firms.
The two cities were followed by Hong Kong and Singapore in the Global Financial Centres report. Both maintained their previous positions, though “there is continuing uncertainty about secondary Asian centers,” the report said. Beijing, Dubai and Shanghai do not have sufficient “breadth or depth” as financial service centers to be global leaders, the report said.
