Date 27 July 2009

China’s State Council has announced that Shanghai will be developed into an international financial centre by 2020. Shanghai was a global financial centre in the 1920s and 30s, and has been China’s financial hub for decades.

With less than 200,000 financial workers as compared to 450,000 in New York, Shanghai faces a serious shortage of financial talents. However, the government has already begun addressing this issue with new initiatives aimed at attracting and retaining financial talents. In addition, the government is also trying to strengthen its institutional environment by turning Renminbi (RMB) into an international currency, allowing foreign companies to list in Shanghai’s stock market and issuing RMB-denominated bonds to finance corporate expansions.

However, the future of Shanghai as a global financial centre remains unclear. This is in part due to its close proximity to Hong Kong, which is expected to create intense competition for talent and resources. Hong Kong currently ranks fourth on the Global Financial Centres Index, after London, New York and Singapore, while Shanghai lags behind at the 35^th placing.

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