Largest Financial Centres

London is the world's largest financial centre as of 2010, according to the Global Financial Centres Index, alongside New York City (2nd), Hong Kong (3rd), Singapore (4th) and Tokyo (5th).

London is the capital of England and is the most visited city in the world. It is home to the headquarters of more than 100 of Europe's 500 largest companies. Some of the largest banking and financial services organisations in London include HSBC, Barclays Bank, Standard Chartered Bank, to name a few.

New York City is the world's most important financial centre. The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), based in New York City, is the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed companies. The NYSE is operated by NYSE Euronext. As of Dec. 31, 2008, NYSE Euronext has about 8,500 listed issues, a total global market capitalization of $16.7 trillion/€12.3 trillion and its equity exchanges transact an average daily trading value of approximately $153 billion/€113 billion.

Hong Kong has the second biggest stock market in Asia. Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEx) is one of the world's 10 largest in terms of market capitalisation. It provides a comprehensive range of products and services for issuers and investors.

Singapore is ranked 4th as a global financial centre. Hong Leong Finance Limited is Singapore’s largest finance company with shareholders' funds of over S$1,365 million as of 31 December 2008. The company clinched the "Finance Company of the Year" award at the inaugural Asian Banking & Finance Retail Banking Awards ceremony in 2007.

Tokyo has the largest metropolitan economy in the world. The Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE), located in Tokyo, Japan, is the second largest stock exchange in the world by market value, just behind the New York Stock Exchange.

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Kelvin Wong Loke Yuen is an experienced writer with a strong background in finance, specializing in the creation of informative and engaging content on topics such as investment strategies, financial ratio analysis, and more. With years of experience in both financial writing and education, Kelvin is adept at translating complex financial concepts into clear, accessible language for a wide range of audiences. Follow him on: LinkedIn.

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