Historically, Switzerland, London and New York have been placed at the top of the global rankings, however the majority of the 275 survey respondents said they expect this to change in the next couple of years.
According to PwC, the respondents expect regulatory pressures to hinder New York and London and for Singapore and Hong Kong to move into first and third positions by 2013 respectively, leaving Switzerland, currently in pole position, to move down one place to second.
In addition to an increased regulatory burden in the West, favourable demographics in the developing Eastern countries are also expected to benefit centres such as Singapore and Hong Kong. Meanwhile, the shift in personal wealth from West to East is expected to continue and will further boost the economies of developing economies.
This shift is also leading to a new order in the evolution of secondary centres – i.e. those established to access neighbouring regions. In this respect, Miami stood out for respondents as a strong up-and-coming booking centre and gateway to a burgeoning Latin American market.
However, despite acknowledging a changing international financial market, 90% of respondents did not believe there was any tax or regulatory risk to any of the offshore assets under their management. PwC said this indicated many had already diversified away from their dependency on traditional offshore clients.
