London is up there with some of the most technologically advanced cities in the world, according to new data from Z/Yen.
The Smart Centres Index (SCI) – a continental rankings system created by London’s commercial think-tank – explores the ability of global commercial centres to create, develop, and deploy technology.
London beat every city in Europe including Paris and Madrid, taking the continent’s crown for the most technologically advanced place.
And it was only pipped to top spot in the global rankings by New York.
Leading centres
Leading centres in the SCI are based in places which combine an innovative, cultural centre with a high-performing university sector across STEM subjects, supported by a well-developed regulatory, commercial, and financial services.
Z/Yen praised London’s infrastructure for enabling smooth trade. The index noted its welcoming legal and tax regime, making it seamless for firms to interact with each other.
And London wasn’t the only UK city in the top 10 – Cambridge and Oxford were placed in 9th and 10th position.
The organisation recently ranked the capital as the top finance hub and the greenest place for banks, brokers and insurers to do business.
Improving in the index
Leading US centres showed a strong performance and Asia/Pacific centres are generally improving in the index, having lagged behind in previous editions of the SCI.
Five Western European centres feature in the top 10, with three from the United States.
Singapore joins Hong Kong in the top 10 among Asia/Pacific centres.
Following an average increase of 2.3% in ratings in SCI 5, the average rating in SCI 6 fell by 4.17% and only four centres rose in the SCI 6 ratings.
Seven centres rose 10 or more places in the rankings in SCI 6, while just two centres fell 10 or more places.
Professor Michael Mainelli, Executive Chairman of Z/Yen, said: “If ever the world needed technology and innovation to solve the global problems, this is it. Our SCI community sees a half-full glass. For example, our SCI community believes that quantum computing is developing quickly enough to soon be applied to manufacturing, scientific research, and the provision of services, though equally challenging current encryption on which all financial services rely. Moving fast and breaking things.”
The SCI is a factor assessment index, combining a number of instrumental factors – data measures drawn from a range of data providers across the world – and assessments given by business and finance professionals of three dimensions related to innovation and technology in major commercial and financial centres.
