23 January 2007
New York Financial Markets report: City response
The City of London is warning against complacency, after a
report commissioned by the Mayor of New York City Michael Bloomberg
highlighted London’s success as a centre for global financial
markets.
Amongst its many findings, the McKinsey report on New York’s
global financial services sector found that a complex regulatory
framework has prompted many foreign firms to stay out of the U.S.
markets. The report warns that New York is losing business and
high-skilled workers to London and other overseas competitors.
The City of London is at the heart of the world’s financial
markets and as its governing body the City of London Corporation is
committed to serving the needs of international business and
maintaining the environment in which organisations and companies
from all over the world can play their part in financing global
trade and development.
The City of London’s Policy Chairman Michael Snyder said:
"Complacency creeps in when people start thinking we are doing well
- so now is the time to stay alert to changes in the global
competitive landscape.
"London needs to hold on to the benefits it derives from its
world-class success in financial services - and that means
re-doubling efforts to make sure we have the right regulation,
taxation, skills and infrastructure - including investment in
improved public transport such as Crossrail.
"The threats to London's position as the world's leading centre
of international financial services do not just come from New York.
That's why the City is opening an office for financial services in
Mumbai, and now has gateways to London in Shanghai, Beijing and
Shenzhen. This week I’ve been visiting the City Office in Brussels
where we closely monitor the EU's likely effects on the UK's most
successful sector."
Ends
Notes to editors
For further information contact: Rebecca Sandles at the City of
London Press Office on 020 7332 1452.
Email.
About the City of London Corporation:
The City of London provides local government services for the
Square Mile, the financial and commercial heart of Britain, and is
committed to maintaining and enhancing the status of the business
City as the world's leading international financial and business
centre through its policies and services. Its responsibilities also
extend far beyond the City boundaries and include management of the
Barbican Centre, Central Criminal Court at the Old Bailey, 10,000
acres of open space including Hampstead Heath and Epping Forest,
three wholesale food markets, as well as acting as the London Port
Health Authority.