The Global Financial Centres Index 34 (GFCI)

The thirty-fouth edition of the Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI 34) was published on 28 September 2023. GFCI 34 provides evaluations of future competitiveness and rankings for 121 financial centres around the world. The GFCI serves as a valuable reference for policy and investment decision-makers.

China Development Institute (CDI) in Shenzhen and Z/Yen Partners in London collaborate in producing the GFCI. The GFCI is updated and published every March and September, and receives considerable attention from the global financial community.

132 financial centres were researched for GFCI 34 of which 121 are in the main index. The GFCI is compiled using 147 instrumental factors. These quantitative measures are provided by third parties including the World Bank, the Economist Intelligence Unit, the OECD and the United Nations.

The instrumental factors are combined with financial centre assessments provided by respondents to the GFCI online questionnaire. GFCI 34 uses 53,789 assessments from 9,097 respondents.

GFCI 34 Results

Leading Centres

• New York leads the index, with London second, ahead of Singapore in third place, which has maintained its slight lead over Hong Kong in fourth position.
• Washington DC and Geneva entered the top 10 in this edition, replacing Seoul and Boston.

Western Europe

• London continues to lead in the region in second place globally, and gained a little ground on New York in the ratings.
• Seven Western European centres feature in the top 20 in GFCI 34.
• All but one centre in the region improved their rating, with the average rating for the region 3.17% higher than in GFCI 33.
• Geneva, Dublin, Isle of Man, Reykjavik, Liechtenstein, and Gibraltar rose 10 or more places in the rankings.

Asia/Pacific

• Asia/Pacific centres performed well in GCI 34, with an average increase in ratings of 3.7%, and with all centres improving in the ratings.
• Singapore continues to lead the region, one rating point ahead of Hong Kong. Shanghai also features in the world top 10.
• Leading Chinese centres were stable in the rankings, but many other centres in China rose in the rankings, while outside China, five centres fell 10 or more places in the rankings.

North America

• Washington DC joined New York, San Francisco, Chicago, and Los Angeles in the world top 10 in this edition of the index.
• Average ratings rose 9.64% in the region, with all centres improving their rating.
• Miami entered the index for the first time in 24th position.

Eastern Europe & Central Asia

• Astana takes the lead position in the region with Prague and Tallinn in second and third position.
• 11 of 16 centres in the region fell in the rankings in GFCI 34, continuing the trend from the last three editions of the index.

Middle East & Africa

• All centres in the region improved their ratings, with Dubai and Abu Dhabi continuing to take first and second places in the region.
• Casablanca continues to be the leading African centre, and is third in the region, overtaking Tel Aviv.
• Mauritius, Riyadh, Kigali, Kuwait City, and Nairobi gained 10 or more places in the rankings.

Latin America & The Caribbean

• For the third edition of the GFCI in a row, the majority of centres in the region fell in the rankings although all centres improved their ratings.
• Cayman Islands, Santiago, and Barbados lead the region, with Barbados up 22 rank places.
• Santiago, Bermuda, and Mexico City fell 10 or more places in the rankings.

FinTech

• We are able to assess 115 centres for their Fintech offering.
• New York retains its leading position in the Fintech ranking, followed by London, which overtook San Francisco to take second position. Shenzhen maintained its fourth place in the table.
• Beijing has joined Singapore, Los Angeles, Washington DC, Shanghai, and Chicago in the top 10, replacing Boston.
• There was a fair amount of dynamism in the rankings, with 22 centres rising 10 or more places in the FinTech ranking and 29 centres falling 10 or more places.

Nespresso Reveals Exclusive New Coffee Variety, A Taste Innovation 20 Years In The Making

Nespresso has announced the launch of N°20, a new and bespoke coffee cultivated exclusively for its superlative taste to surprise and delight coffee drinkers and the culmination of 20 years of research and dedication.

Born of a dream to create the ultimate cup of coffee in response to consumers’ increasingly discerning palates and penchant for rare and high-quality varieties, Nespresso’s coffee team began by identifying the finest Arabicas from its Coffee Collection Catalogue. 

Since 2003, Nespresso’s coffee masters have worked tirelessly to create this high-quality Arabica coffee plant and identify the ideal terroir in which the new variety would flourish. 

The result is a coffee which boasts an exquisite taste profile, featuring enticing orange blossom aromas and fresh citrus notes. N°20 is Q certified by the Coffee Quality Institute, an independent non-profit organisation that designates high standards of quality in the coffee industry. 

A decades-long quest for perfection 

Taking inspiration from generations of farmers who have traditionally cross-planted coffee varieties to create more resilient plants, Nespresso’s experts decided to use this common practice in their quest for taste perfection. 

Once they settled on a combination which yielded this high-quality taste, the team set about looking for the ideal environment to plant the variety.  

After experimental plantings in Colombia, Nicaragua and Indonesia, N°20 was eventually found to thrive best in the soil of the Cauca and Caldas regions of Colombia. There, the coffee was grown by just 59 farmers who collectively planted and cared for one million coffee trees of this new and unique Arabica variety.  

In keeping with Nespresso’s commitment to making coffee a force for good, the 59 farmers who cultivated the new variety are all part of the Nespresso AAA Program and were consequently paid a premium as a reward for their investment in sustainable high quality.  

Guillaume Le Cunff, CEO of Nespresso, said: “N°20 is the embodiment of Nespresso’s values: an obsession with perfection and a determination to innovate. Twenty years of dedication has resulted in an exquisite taste unlike anything that coffee-lovers have tried before. I’m thrilled to be able to share this labour of love with people – its quality is a true testament to what decades of passion can produce!” 

Karsten Ranitzsch, Head of Coffee at Nespresso, said: “They say good things are worth waiting for, and that’s certainly true when it comes to N°20. Notes of orange blossom, accompanied by rich flowery and fruity aromatics and a bright, citric acidity combine to create a coffee with a rare, elegant and subtle personality. Developed with creating the perfect taste front of mind, N°20 is guaranteed to delight even the most discerning drinker.” 

N°20 is a seasonal coffee, meaning that coffee lovers can enjoy its elegant and aromatic profile for a limited amount of time each year. To fully enjoy its rare and refined taste, Nespresso recommends that the subtle flavours of N°20 be best enjoyed as an espresso. 

As it is a limited edition with a limited volume, it will initially launch in Nespresso Original capsules in 2023, before becoming available in Vertuo capsules next year.  

About Coffee Quality Institute (CQI) 

CQI is a non-profit organization working internationally to improve the quality of coffee and the lives of people who produce it. CQI is also the only third-party green coffee quality verification and certification in specialty and fine coffee that is globally recognized. More info can be found here: www.coffeeinstitute.org