Financial center
A financial center (or financial center ; English financial center ) is a place or state that has a high concentration of the financial sector and where the existence and activities of market participants are not or barely restricted by market regulation , so that transactions can be carried out with lower transaction costs than elsewhere.
General
The financial sector includes the financial markets ( money , foreign exchange and capital markets including stock exchanges ) and market participants such as financial service providers , investment funds , credit institutions , pension funds , insurance companies or securities service companies . They all contribute to a high share of the financial economy in the gross domestic product , which makes a place or state a financial center.
An international financial center is usually a place where there are a large number of leading national and foreign financial institutions ( foreign banks ) that have business relationships with one another through interbank trade or international credit transactions .
Large cities or city-states ( Singapore , Monaco ) are usually referred to as financial centers , but the term is also used for (mostly) small states . The Switzerland is due to their tax law often referred to as a financial center. A special feature are so-called offshore financial centers , which are characterized by low taxes , a high degree of confidentiality and secrecy (no disclosure of information about financial transactions and ownership) and minimal financial market supervision and regulation. These are mostly smaller islands that represent separate legal entities (e.g. the Cayman Islands and Gibraltar as British overseas territories or the Channel Island of Jersey as the crown property of the British crown ).
species
Four categories of financial centers can be distinguished, which are hierarchically related to one another. On the first level are the national financial centers that target the needs of domestic market participants. The second level is formed by regional financial centers with responsibility for an economic region . The third level consists of offshore financial centers that have a low tax rate ( low-tax country ), low labor costs ( low-wage country ) or low market regulation . Global financial centers , including Frankfurt, meet the needs of a global clientele.
history
The first international financial center was probably Florence in the 13th century, which achieved this role mainly through international trade and by lending money to rulers. In northern and central Italy, with other financial centers such as Genoa and Venice, a first core area of cashless payment transactions with an Italian character developed. In the 14th century the financial supremacy of the Florentines ended when Edward III. , the King of England, did not acknowledge his debts.
North of the Alps, the Nuremberg Stock Exchange served as a link in trade between Italy and other European economic centers. With the Banco Publico , one of the first giro banks was created in the financial center .
In the 17th century Amsterdam became the successor to Genoa. In contrast to the Italian city-state, Amsterdam was able to rely on the economy of a large-area state.
Within the next 200 years, Amsterdam lost its position to London . This followed from Britain's dominance in the economy in the 19th century through the Industrial Revolution , in the military after defeating Napoleon and the expansion of the British Empire, and from its lead in the development of banking and financial instruments (for example, checks ). Several other financial centers emerged in the 19th and 20th centuries, such as Geneva , Paris , Frankfurt am Main , Zurich and Milan , none of which could challenge London.
At the end of the 19th century brought Germany and the United States in the industry to the UK on. New York could not challenge London until the end of the First World War, and the Great Depression of 1929 interrupted the rise of New York, although London was also hit hard. After the Second World War, New York finally became the dominant financial center because it was the only major international financial center not directly affected by the war. New York could not hold this position for long. As early as 1958, London returned to the forefront of finance.
Nationally, Cologne's banking system gained great importance and made the city the most important German financial center during the French era up to the founding period .
In the 1980s, Japan was the only country able to export capital on a large scale. Normally, that should have resulted in Tokyo becoming the dominant financial hub in the world. However, the Japanese financial economy is less outward-looking than that of most other international financial centers. In addition, the bursting of the Japanese “soap bubble economy” has plunged the country's financial economy into a deep crisis.
Before the Second World War, Shanghai was the leading financial center in the Far East. The financial sector there was destroyed by the Second World War (1937 to 1945) and the civil war that followed (1946 to 1949). Until the beginning of the reform and opening policy in 1978, the communist government prevented Shanghai from rising again as an international financial center. Two new international financial centers emerged in the region after World War II: Hong Kong and Singapore .
supply and demand
On the demand side are domestic and transnational financial firms whose desire to expand and diversify is creating a demand for suitable urban facilities. Likewise, economic growth and expanding foreign trade lead to greater demand.
On the supply side, this demand can only be met by cities that invest heavily in the required infrastructure (airports, ports, roads, rail links, telecommunications, etc.), provide the financial sector with high-quality information infrastructure and limit popular resistance to gentrification .
List of the most important financial centers
The Global Financial Centers Index compares the competitiveness of 100 financial centers around the world based on 28,599 ratings from international financial players. The index is compiled by the Z / Yen Group and published semi-annually by the City of London Corporation . The following data is taken from the September 2018 index (Global Financial Centers Index 24).
The ranking results from the total of the five categories of people (availability of qualified workers, flexibility of the labor market, quality of training), economic framework conditions (legislation, taxes, corruption, freedom of trade), market access (trading in securities, range of different financial services ), Infrastructure (real estate prices, accessibility by public transport) and general competitiveness (price level, quality of life, economic climate).
The index also makes a classification according to whether financial centers are of global importance ( Global Centers ) or whether they are financial centers with only transnational importance ( Transnational Centers ) or local centers ( Local Centers ). There are further gradations in these categories.
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Financial centers of global importance
- Worldwide importance is ascribed to 27 financial centers. These are in turn divided into four subcategories: Global Leaders (broad and established financial centers), Global Diversified (relatively broad financial centers), Global Specialists (more specialized financial centers) and Global Contenders (emerging financial centers).
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Financial centers with international significance
- 34 financial centers are assigned a transnational significance. Subdivisions are made as to whether they are broadly based and established financial centers ( Established Transnational ), relatively broadly based ( Transnational Diversified ), more specialized ( Transnational Specialists ) or newly emerging financial centers ( Transnational Contenders ).
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Financial centers of local importance
- 39 financial centers are of local importance for the respective state in which they are located. These are also divided into broadly based and established financial centers ( Established Players ), relatively broadly based ( Local Diversified ), more specialized ( Local Specialists ) or emerging financial centers ( Evolving Centers ).
For comparison, the data from the Global Financial Centers Index 8 March 2017 are shown.
Financial center | country | GFCI score 24 | category | Change of rank GFCI 23 |
GFCI score 22 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
London | Great Britain | 788 | Global Leader | 794 | |
New York City | United States | 786 | Global Leader | 1 | 792 |
Hong Kong | Hong Kong | 783 | Global Leader | 0 | 781 |
Singapore | Singapore | 769 | Global Leader | 1 | 765 |
Shanghai | People's Republic of China | 766 | Global Leader | 1 | 741 |
Tokyo | Japan | 746 | Global Leader | 1 | 749 |
Sydney | Australia | 734 | Global Leader | 2 | 724 |
Beijing | People's Republic of China | 733 | Global Leader | 3 | 721 |
Zurich | Switzerland | 732 | Global Leader | 7 | 713 |
Frankfurt am Main | Germany | 730 | Global Leader | 10 | 708 |
Toronto | Canada | 728 | Global Leader | 4 | 728 |
Shenzhen | People's Republic of China | 726 | Global specialist | 6 | 710 |
Boston | United States | 725 | Transnational Diversified | 3 | 722 |
San Francisco | United States | 724 | Established transnational | 6 | 726 |
Dubai | United Arab Emirates | 722 | Global Leader | 4 | 709 |
los Angeles | United States | 721 | Established transnational | 1 | 712 |
Chicago | United States | 717 | Global Diversified | 3 | 718 |
Vancouver | Canada | 709 | Transnational Diversified | 3 | 717 |
Guangzhou | People's Republic of China | 708 | Established transnational | 9 | 678 |
Melbourne | Australia | 699 | Established transnational | 8 | 720 |
Luxembourg | Luxembourg | 694 | Global Contender | 7 | 701 |
Osaka | Japan | 693 | Established player | 1 | 692 |
Paris | France | 691 | Global Leader | 1 | 687 |
Montreal | Canada | 690 | Established transnational | 11 | 719 |
Tel Aviv | Israel | 689 | Established player | 9 | 661 |
Abu Dhabi | United Arab Emirates | 686 | Global Leader | 1 | 683 |
Geneva | Switzerland | 685 | Established transnational | 1 | 682 |
Casablanca | Morocco | 684 | Transnational Specialist | 4 | 664 |
George Town | Cayman Islands ( BOT ) | 683 | Transnational Specialist | 7 | 700 |
Hamilton | Bermuda ( BOT ) | 680 | Evolving Center | 6 | 656 |
Qingdao | People's Republic of China | 679 | Global Contender | 2 | 662 |
Taipei | Taiwan | 670 | Local specialist | 2 | 673 |
Seoul | South Korea | 668 | Global Leader | 6 | 679 |
Doha | Qatar | 662 | Transnational Contender | 13 | 617 |
Amsterdam | Netherlands | 657 | Transnational Diversified | 15 | 613 |
Lille | France | 655 | Global Diversified | 12 | 616 |
Dublin | Ireland | 652 | Global Leader | 6 | 666 |
Cape Town | South Africa | 651 | Local specialists | k. A. | k. A. |
Munich | Germany | 639 | Established transnational | 4 | 660 |
Kuala Lumpur | Malaysia | 638 | Established transnational | 0 | 632 |
Hamburg | Germany | 636 | Established player | 12 | 676 |
Calgary | Canada | 635 | Transnational Diversified | 4 | 642 |
Edinburgh | Great Britain | 634 | Transnational Specialist | 0 | 628 |
Busan | South Korea | 631 | International Contenders | 2 | 618 |
Wellington | New Zealand | 630 | Local diversified | 1 | 621 |
Monaco | Monaco | 629 | Local specialist | 8 | 604 |
Saint Helier | Jersey ( CD ) | 628 | Local specialist | 1 | 637 |
Bangkok | Thailand | 626 | Established player | 11 | 634 |
Port Louis | Mauritius | 625 | Local specialist | 13 | 601 |
Glasgow | Great Britain | 622 | Local specialist | 1 | 614 |
Vienna | Austria | 621 | Transnational Diversified | 13 | 583 |
Tallinn | Estonia | 620 | Local specialist | 27 | 559 |
Madrid | Spain | 619 | Global Diversified | 12 | 631 |
Brussels | Belgium | 617 | Transnational Diversified | 8 | 592 |
São Paulo | Brazil | 616 | Established player | 12 | 574 |
Milan | Italy | 613 | Global Diversified | 5 | 593 |
Johannesburg | South Africa | 612 | Transnational Diversified | 5 | 610 |
Stockholm | Sweden | 611 | Local diversified | 16 | 629 |
Manama | Bahrain | 607 | Transnational Specialist | 8 | 612 |
St. Peter Port | Guernsey ( CD ) | 603 | Transnational Contender | 7 | 605 |
Nur-Sultan | Kazakhstan | 599 | Global specialist | 7 | 548 |
Mexico city | Mexico | 598 | Local specialist | 8 | 569 |
Road Town | British Virgin Islands ( BOT ) | 597 | Transnational Contender | 3 | 594 |
Oslo | Norway | 596 | Established transnational | 8 | 602 |
Rio de Janeiro | Brazil | 594 | Established transnational | 1 | 557 |
Warsaw | Poland | 592 | Established transnational | 21 | 620 |
Nassau | Bahamas | 591 | Local specialist | 8 | 596 |
Istanbul | Turkey | 590 | Established transnational | 8 | 562 |
Riad | Saudi Arabia | 588 | Transnational Specialist | 1 | 573 |
Lisbon | Portugal | 585 | Local diversified | 4 | 564 |
Budapest | Hungary | 584 | Local diversified | 18 | 623 |
Rome | Italy | 583 | Local diversified | 7 | 579 |
Vaduz | Liechtenstein | 582 | Local specialist | 4 | 570 |
Prague | Czech Republic | 581 | Established player | 3 | 567 |
Gibraltar | Gibraltar ( BOT ) | 580 | Transnational Specialist | 9 | 576 |
Jakarta | Indonesia | 579 | Local specialist | 14 | 546 |
Gujarat International Finance Tec-City | India | 578 | International Contenders | k. A. | k. A. |
Tianjin | People's Republic of China | 577 | Evolving Center | 15 | 588 |
Cheng you | People's Republic of China | 576 | Transnational Specialist | 3 | 556 |
St. Petersburg | Russia | 575 | Local specialist | 11 | 531 |
Copenhagen | Denmark | 573 | Transnational Diversified | 23 | 599 |
New Delhi | India | 572 | Transnational Contender | 4 | 560 |
Moscow | Russia | 571 | Global Diversified | 0 | 555 |
Reykjavík | Iceland | 570 | Local specialist | 9 | 521 |
Douglas | Isle of Man ( CD ) | 568 | Transnational Contender | 28 | 600 |
Manila | Philippines | 566 | Local specialist | 2 | 554 |
Riga | Latvia | 565 | Evolving Center | 0 | 551 |
Valletta | Malta | 564 | Evolving Center | 8 | 561 |
Hangzhou | People's Republic of China | 563 | International Contenders | k. A. | k. A. |
Panama City | Panama | 562 | Local specialist | 10 | 558 |
Nicosia | Cyprus | 560 | Evolving Centers | 19 | 566 |
Mumbai | India | 558 | Local diversified | 19 | 565 |
Buenos Aires | Argentina | 557 | Transnational Specialist | 18 | 563 |
Helsinki | Finland | 556 | Local diversified | 9 | 553 |
Baku | Azerbaijan | 555 | Evolving Center | 0 | 511 |
Almaty | Kazakhstan | 550 | Evolving Center | 2 | 519 |
Sofia | Bulgaria | 544 | Local specialists | k. A. | k. A. |
Athens | Greece | 518 | Local diversified | 6 | 525 |
Port of Spain | Trinidad and Tobago | 510 | Evolving Centers | 13 | 552 |
Dalian | People's Republic of China | 499 | Transnational Contender | 4 | 501 |
More ranking lists
All cities that are listed in at least two of the four rankings and that are also listed in at least two of the four rankings in a place within the top 30 are listed. London and New York City enjoy an outstanding position, they can always be found among the top three financial centers. The Asian financial centers Tokyo and Hong Kong also regularly make it into the top 10 , followed by Singapore , Shanghai and Seoul . In Europe, Paris , Frankfurt am Main , Zurich and Amsterdam are among the leading financial centers. In North America, Chicago , Toronto and Boston regularly follow New York. Sydney is the most important financial center in Australia.
Financial center | country |
International Financial Centers Development Index (2012) | World's most economically powerful cities (2008) | Worldwide Centers of Commerce Index (2008) | Global Financial Centers Index (2013) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Amsterdam | Netherlands | 15th | - | 10. | 45. |
Boston | United States | 19th | - | 21st | 07. |
Brussels | Belgium | 23. | - | 30th | 60. |
Chicago | United States | 12. | 05. | 05. | 14th |
Dubai | United Arab Emirates | 14th | - | 44. | 25th |
Frankfurt am Main | Germany | 07. | - | 08. | 09 |
Geneva | Switzerland | 16. | - | 40. | 08. |
Hong Kong | Hong Kong ( SAR ) | 04. | 02. | 06. | 03. |
Copenhagen | Denmark | 20th | - | 14th | 49. |
London | United Kingdom | 02. | 01. | 01. | 01. |
los Angeles | United States | - | 08. | 17th | - |
Luxembourg | Luxembourg | 26th | - | - | 13. |
Munich | Germany | 21st | - | 27. | 34. |
New York City | United States | 01. | 03. | 02. | 02. |
Osaka | Japan | 38. | - | 19th | 30th |
Paris | France | 05. | 07. | 07. | 29 |
San Francisco | United States | 17th | - | 28. | 12. |
Seoul | South Korea | 31. | 06. | 09 | 10. |
Shanghai | People's Republic of China | 08. | 09 | 24. | 16. |
Singapore | Singapore | 06. | - | 04. | 04. |
Stockholm | Sweden | 25th | - | 16. | 37. |
Sydney | Australia | 10. | - | 12. | 15th |
Tokyo | Japan | 03. | 04. | 03. | 05. |
Toronto | Canada | 18th | 10. | 13. | 11. |
Vancouver | Canada | 24. | - | 37. | 19th |
Washington, DC | United States | 09 | - | 36. | 17th |
Vienna | Austria | 27. | - | 26th | 20th |
Zurich | Switzerland | 11. | - | 15th | 06. |
Financial centers in Germany
The financial center Frankfurt am Main has an outstanding position in Germany and is one of the most important financial centers worldwide. Frankfurt's leading position is characterized by the high concentration of companies in the financial sector: In addition to the largest German stock exchange ( Frankfurt Stock Exchange ), the most important major German banks ( Deutsche Bank , Commerzbank , DZ Bank , KfW Bankengruppe , DekaBank ), investment companies (Allianz Global Investors Europe, DWS Investments , Union Investment ) and auditing companies ( PricewaterhouseCoopers or KPMG ), as well as numerous branches of foreign banks and other international financial service providers. Frankfurt is also the seat of the European Central Bank , the Deutsche Bundesbank , the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) and the European Insurance Supervisory Authority (EIOPA).
The Munich financial center is one of the world's leading insurance locations , as the industry heavyweights Allianz and Munich Re are based here. Munich is less characterized by financial institutions than by large industrial companies such as BMW , Siemens , MAN , but some important German banks ( HypoVereinsbank , BayernLB ) are also based here.
The financial center of Hamburg is the location in Germany with the greatest density of private banks, the seat of the largest German savings bank ( Hamburger Sparkasse ) as well as a stronghold for special insurance and the seat of important private ( HanseMerkur ) and statutory health insurance companies ( DAK , Techniker ). Historically, Hamburg is also the seat of the oldest stock exchange in Germany , the oldest private bank in Germany ( Berenberg ), the oldest insurer in the world ( Hamburger Feuerkasse ) and the first savings bank in Germany .
The Stuttgart financial center focuses on the areas of SME financing, old-age provision and private capital investments. In addition to the largest German Landesbank ( LBBW ), Stuttgart is home to the largest exchange for securitized derivatives in Europe ( Börse Stuttgart ) and the L-Bank , one of the largest European development banks.
The Düsseldorf financial center is the largest location for financial services in North Rhine-Westphalia and has numerous banks in the private banking sector and is the most important location in Germany for Japanese foreign banks . The largest German state development bank NRW.BANK is also based in Düsseldorf. After all, Düsseldorf is an important location for insurance companies such as the ERGO insurance group , Provinzial Rheinland and ARAG .
See also
- Offshore financial center
- Cosmopolitan city
- Global City
- Frankfurt am Main financial center
- Düsseldorf financial center
- Hamburg Financial Center (Association)
- London financial center
- Initiative Finanzstandort Deutschland IFD, state-private sector cooperation
literature
- Merki, Christoph Maria (ed.): Europe's financial centers. History and importance in the 20th century . Frankfurt a. M./New York 2005, ISBN 3-593-37743-8
Individual evidence
- ↑ Jürgen Krumnow / Ludwig Gramlich / Thomas A. Lange / Thomas M. Dewner (eds.), Gabler Bank-Lexikon: Bank - Börse - Financing , 2002, p. 311
- ↑ Robert Traba / Bartosz Dziewanowski-Stefanczyk (eds.), Wirtschaftsgeschichte , 2013, p. 199
- ^ Report in the FAZ: Index is published by the London-based analysis company Z / Yen Group and the China Development Institute
- ↑ a b The Global Financial Centers Index 24. Retrieved January 11, 2019 .
- ↑ Xinhua-Dow Jones International Financial Centers Development Index 2012 (PDF; 2.5 MB)
- ^ Forbes World's most economically powerful cities 2008
- ↑ Mastercard Worldwide Centers of Commerce Index 2008 (PDF; 844 kB)
- ↑ The Global Financial Centers Index 14 ( Memento from September 4, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) (PDF; 2.2 MB)