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Coffeeshop Chit Chat - Newsweek: Bankers' new hope - Singapore </TD><TD id=msgunetc noWrap align=right>
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</NOBR> </TD><TD class=msgDate width="30%" noWrap align=right>6:56 am </TD></TR><TR class=msghead><TD class=msgT height=20 width="1%" noWrap align=right>To: </TD><TD class=msgTname width="68%" noWrap>ALL <NOBR></NOBR></TD><TD class=msgNum noWrap align=right> (1 of 3) </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR><TR><TD class=msgleft rowSpan=4 width="1%"> </TD><TD class=wintiny noWrap align=right>12582.1 </TD></TR><TR><TD height=8></TD></TR><TR><TD class=msgtxt>Bankers' new hope - Singapore
AS THE fortunes of Wall Street and the City of London decline, moneymen are looking east for new bases. And so far, the biggest beneficiary seems to be Singapore.
The latest Global Financial Centres Index shows that Singapore overtook Hong Kong to secure third place - right behind New York and London - in the global competitiveness rankings. And the city state now leads the list of locations 'where new offices were likely to be opened'.
Singapore's clean reputation has aided its rise. Its bankers played no part in the tricky dealings that brought down the global financial system.
It's also got a leg-up on Britain and America when it comes to regulation: Singapore's rules are clear and well established, thanks in part to an overhaul in the wake of the Barings Bank scandal of the early 1990s.
These attributes are likely to further boost Singapore's popularity, which had already been on the rise before the crisis, thanks to the country's reduced tax rates for offshore funds, unmatched even in Hong Kong.
Singapore's financial services sector grew by 16 per cent in 2007 - and the number of hedge fund managers rose 50 per cent to 300 - before slowing to 5.6 per cent last year as the recession set in.
Meanwhile, the biggest loser may be London, which found favour as a setting for international business in the boom years but is now suffering as globalisation recedes.
(So far, New York seems better cushioned, since the United States accounts for a quarter of the world economy.)
Up to 20 per cent of all jobs in London's financial services sector have already disappeared since early last year, with another 80,000 job-holders estimated to be on the chopping block. Many of them are highly skilled and footloose.
Maybe they'll follow the money - and head to Singapore, too. WILLIAM UNDERHILL
The above article appeared in the April 27 issue of Newsweek.</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
AS THE fortunes of Wall Street and the City of London decline, moneymen are looking east for new bases. And so far, the biggest beneficiary seems to be Singapore.
The latest Global Financial Centres Index shows that Singapore overtook Hong Kong to secure third place - right behind New York and London - in the global competitiveness rankings. And the city state now leads the list of locations 'where new offices were likely to be opened'.
Singapore's clean reputation has aided its rise. Its bankers played no part in the tricky dealings that brought down the global financial system.
It's also got a leg-up on Britain and America when it comes to regulation: Singapore's rules are clear and well established, thanks in part to an overhaul in the wake of the Barings Bank scandal of the early 1990s.
These attributes are likely to further boost Singapore's popularity, which had already been on the rise before the crisis, thanks to the country's reduced tax rates for offshore funds, unmatched even in Hong Kong.
Singapore's financial services sector grew by 16 per cent in 2007 - and the number of hedge fund managers rose 50 per cent to 300 - before slowing to 5.6 per cent last year as the recession set in.
Meanwhile, the biggest loser may be London, which found favour as a setting for international business in the boom years but is now suffering as globalisation recedes.
(So far, New York seems better cushioned, since the United States accounts for a quarter of the world economy.)
Up to 20 per cent of all jobs in London's financial services sector have already disappeared since early last year, with another 80,000 job-holders estimated to be on the chopping block. Many of them are highly skilled and footloose.
Maybe they'll follow the money - and head to Singapore, too. WILLIAM UNDERHILL
The above article appeared in the April 27 issue of Newsweek.</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
