Having dominated the offshore category in the Global Financial Centres Index for the last seven years, Jersey and Guernsey have tumbled down the offshore rankings in the GCFI 16 (September 2014 edition) - falling to 5th and 7th positions respectively, their lowest ever offshore position since the index began in March 2007.
Their fall in the offshore section has been echoed by a decline in their overall positions. Jersey has fallen to 62nd place in GFCI 16 (from 41st in March 2014). Guernsey has fallen to 67th from 42nd in the same period.
The Global Financial Centres Index provides profiles, ratings and rankings for 83 financial centres, drawing on two separate sources of data – instrumental factors and responses to an online survey. Instrumental factors are in five broad ‘areas of competitiveness’: Business Environment, Financial Sector Development, Infrastructure, Human Capital and Reputational and General Factors.
GFCI uses responses to an ongoing online questionnaire completed by international financial services professionals. Respondents are asked to rate those centres with which they are familiar and to answer a number of questions relating to their perceptions of competitiveness.
On Jersey and Guernsey, GFCI 16 stated: "The reason for the declines is that finance professionals have given the offshore centres significantly lower ratings rather than fundamental changes measured by the instrumental factors."
The top seven offshore centres in GFCI 16 are (with their overall position):
1. British Virgin Islands (47)
2. Gibraltar (53)
3. Cayman Islands (54)
4. Hamilton (Bermuda) (58)
5. Jersey (62)
6. Isle of Man (64)
7. Guernsey (67)
Responding to Jersey's position in the rankings, Richard Corrigan, Deputy CEO, Jersey Finance noted that the Channel Islands were not alone in slipping down the rankings.
“Western Europe and all offshore financial centres have experienced a fall in ratings in the Global Financial Centres Index 16," he said
“We understand that there has been a shift in the level of responses to the survey from respondents in North America and the Asia Pacific region by as much as 20 per cent, and a decrease in the equivalent number of responses from Europe. This change will have a detrimental impact on our rankings and will inevitably give a greater bias to both Cayman and the BVI which have traditionally had more clients in the region.
“Whilst these latest rankings fail to reflect the trends that we are experiencing, it does reinforce the importance of enhancing our presence and gearing up our marketing activity in key overseas markets, especially Asia Pacific."