(Yicai) Sept. 17 -- Shanghai has regained a position among the world's five leading financial centers in the Global Financial Centres Index for the first time in four years, while mainland China's broader representation also strengthened.

Shanghai moved up one rung to fifth spot after scoring a rating of 754 points, according to the latest list released yesterday by UK think tank Z/Yen Group and the China Development Institute. The last time the city was among the world's top five financial centers was March 2022, when it placed fourth, while its best-ever performance was third in 2020.

New York, London, Hong Kong, and Singapore ranked first through fourth, unchanged from the previous index. Tokyo climbed four spots to sixth, Seoul, Shenzhen, and Zurich each rose one spot to come in seventh, eighth, and 10th, respectively, while Dubai dropped two places to ninth.

"Over 20 years the GFCI has watched the remorseless digitalization of finance alongside the relentless, and essential, financial pivot to Asia," said Michael Mainelli, chairman of London-based Z/Yen. “Six Asia/Pacific centers are in the top 10 in the 40th edition. Seven are in the top 10 in the GFCI FinTech ranking.

"The continued strength of Asian finance, and the strength of their technology and AI base is a challenge to traditional centers in a world where geopolitics plays havoc with financial center attractiveness, and AI upends the stability of financial IT stacks," Mainelli pointed out.

The ratings of most financial hubs improved, with the average across the 117 cities in the index rising 0.8 percent. Eastern Europe and Central Asia logged the largest declines, with average ratings falling 1.1 percent, while the Asia-Pacific region posted the strongest increase, with its average rating rising 1.5 percent.

Twelve Chinese mainland cities made the GFCI, with their rankings and scores rising across the board. Beijing climbed six places to 16th, while Guangzhou and Qingdao gained two spots each to 28th and 31st, respectively, followed by Chengdu at 34, Hangzhou at 59, Dalian at 64, Wuhan at 66, Xi'an at 73, Tianjin at 79, and Nanjing at 86. 

Since 2007, the GFCI has been published twice a year, evaluating and ranking global financial centers across five broad areas of competitiveness: business environment, human capital, infrastructure, financial sector development, and reputation. 

Editors: Dou Shicong, Martin Kadiev