Jersey has retained its top spot as the highest rated offshore jurisdiction in the latest biannual Global Financial Centers Index (GFCI) despite an overall fall in the rankings for the Channel Islands amid fierce onshore competition.
Among offshore territories, Jersey placed highest in 28th place, next followed by Guernsey (31st), the Cayman Islands (41st) and the Isle of Man (43rd). London retained its place as the top financial center, above New York, Hong Kong and Singapore.
Jersey reported that although its overall rating had improved since the last GFCI report, in which it ranked 20th, particularly strong performances from a number of major cities, including Paris, Vienna and Kuala Lumpur, saw its position relative to other financial centers fall. Jersey now places just behind Melbourne, Paris and Munich and ahead of Oslo and Qatar.
Geoff Cook, the head of Jersey Finance – the promotional agency for Jersey’s financial services industry, commented: “In the last eight consecutive Indexes, Jersey has been the highest rated offshore jurisdiction. It is encouraging that Jersey continues to maintain such a high ranking, ahead not only of all the main offshore competitors, but also above a number of financial centers in EU jurisdictions, such as Malta and Dublin.”
“Recent market conditions and a remarkable period of regulatory change have presented significant challenges for offshore centers and the Crown Dependencies in particular. This is reflected in the latest rankings, and in the number of onshore city centers moving up the rankings. While this is a reminder of just how competitive the market is for finance centers globally, the fact that Jersey’s rating has increased yet again is an indication that it continues to perform well and is still perceived very positively by others in the marketplace.”
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