Top 5 Financial Cities in the World

4. Hong Kong

GFCI Rating: 725

Hong Kong is one of the most international cities in Greater China given its history as part of Britain in the last century. Many foreign financial institutions have operations in the city and Hong Kong also has one of the world’s largest stock exchanges by aggregate market capitalization of listed companies in terms of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

As a financial city, the government of Hong Kong writes, “As one of the leading international financial centres, Hong Kong is a prime location for financial services and home to many financial institutions. Hong Kong’s financial markets operate under effective and transparent regulations that are in line with international standards. Located at the heart of Asia, Hong Kong also thrives on close financial integration with Mainland China, extensive networks with the rest of the world, sound legal system, simple and competitive tax regime, free flow of capital, a full range of financial products, and a large pool of financial talents. The financial sector had a workforce of over 277,000, or 7.6% of working population in Hong Kong in 2021, and contributed to some 21.3% of Hong Kong’s Gross Domestic Product.”