Dubai leads Middle East in global financial survey

UAE  A City of London Corporation survey said the reputations of London and New York as financial centres have been damaged by the credit crunch compared with smaller rivals such as Dubai.The global survey of financial professionals was conducted before the fall of Lehman Brothers, the proposed US$700 billion US bailout of Wall Street firms, and a ban on short-selling of UK and US financial stocks.It showed London, followed by New York, was still the world's top financial centre.But the twice yearly Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI) report also showed both cities. London especially, had lost some cachet compared with the previous six months period due to a perceived failing in regulatory supervision.Dubai, ranked 23, topped the list of centres where respondents said they expected to open new offices in the next few years, followed by Geneva.Dubai led the charge for the Middle East in the Global Financial Centres Index, which ranked the emirate ahead of Qatar and Bahrain as cities most likely to become more significant on the world stage in future.Dubai beat Geneva, New York, Mumbai and London as places firms surveyed said they would establish a regional office in the next few years."It seems that the rise in importance of Dubai has meant that other Middle Eastern centres, particularly Qatar and Bahrain, are also gaining a higher profile," the survey said.Stuart Pearce, chief executive of the Qatar Financial Centre, said: "More and more financial services companies are looking at the Middle East and are seeing it as a place of strategic importance."Qatar rose two places in the survey to 45 and was one of the biggest gainers in terms of points. Bahrain was ranked 43rd."Just watch out for Dubai over the next five years -- huge amounts of capital and a real willingness to do what it takes to become a global centre," a New York-based asset manager was quoted as saying.The report surveyed 1,406 bankers, fund managers, and other financial professionals across several European, Asian, North American and offshore locations between February and July. A total of 59 financial centres were assessed.Stuart Fraser, policy chairman at the City of London Corporation, told Reuters he expected industry opinion towards London and New York to continue to sag in the next year as financial regulations were tightened and employment prospects fell."The gap between them and Shanghai, Dubai and other areas will (continue to) contract somewhat," he said.In Europe,  Copenhagen was the fastest riser, jumping six places to 38th and Oslo came in 41st up four places.The big losers in the overall rankings included Frankfurt, which fell three places to ninth, and Paris down six places to 20th.

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