Research Republic

A report on Asian Financial Centres by Research Republic for the City of London Corporation was covered in a Financial Times article, 'Hong Kong poses threat to City', by Brooke Masters, today. The report, 'The Future of Asian Financial Centres - Challenges and Opportunities for the City of London' analyses the emergence of Hong Kong SAR, Tokyo and Singapore, examining their development, their geopolitical context and the basis of their competitiveness. The report finds, as Masters reports, a lack of financial integration of the three centres, and suggests a proactive role for City institutions in extending business networks in Asia, as well as facilitating the outward expansion of Asian companies. Although none of the financial centres reviewed pose a substantive threat to the City's position, the report also cautions that recent regulatory failures in the UK, and the comparative stability of Asian markets in the current crisis compared to those in the west, are factors that could tip the balance.