Asia increasingly attracts banking talent

Talent in the financial services sector is increasingly being attracted to low tax jurisdictions such as Singapore and Hong Kong.

Growth in the Asian economies is predicted to outstrip expansion of western gross domestic product over the coming years, leading to growing numbers of people gravitating towards the region in search of finance jobs. More people are expected to opt for a move to the region to one of the two financial hubs, following in the footsteps of HSBC boss Michael Geoghegan who recently moved with his family from London to Hong Kong.

In a recent study published by the City of London Corporation, Singapore was reported to have made gains between July and December 2009, in spite of the global economic downturn, reinforcing reports of its strength as a banking market. In the Global Financial Centres study, the organisation also singled out Hong Kong, Tokyo, Shanghai and Beijing as performing well over the period in question, suggesting that investment - and therefore employment - is continuing to move into Asia.

For the most part, people moving to such countries are pleased to have made the decision, as both Hong Kong and Singapore offer warm climates, high salaries and a good standard of living, coupled with competitive taxation systems.

In the wake of the global downturn, Singapore's government is moving towards a policy of long-term economic growth, with plans to invest in training, further tax benefits and other ways of boosting efficiency, according to a recent announcement by finance minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam. He wants to generate gross domestic product growth of two to three per cent annually over the next decade and additional tax incentives are being planned for finance firms, in order to attract investment from the sector in the island city-state.

This could all spell good news for the 4.8 million people currently resident in Singapore and any professionals working in the finance sector planning a move there this year. "We have to restructure our overall economy towards higher-value activities and exit from less efficient ones," Mr Shanmugaratnam declared during a speech to parliament.

Speaking about the particular attractions offered by Singapore to overseas nationals taking up jobs there, foreign exchange trader Conor Elliott highlighted the opportunities for travel in Asia and to meet new people as influencing his decision. Having now experienced the low-tax regime in Singapore, he explained it "will influence my decision to potentially go elsewhere for work", as many other destinations are now raising taxes for high earners.

"Lifestyle and travel, combined with great weather make Singapore a great place to live and a great place to travel from," he enthused.

Tamsyn Bowker, who is working in IT in the territory, concurred, citing "the year round weather, the cleanliness and the lack of petty crime" as major attractions for those living in Singapore, as well as the "work hard, play hard" ethos of the expat community and the many excellent restaurants.

According to Mr Elliott, the future outlook for the region is good and Singapore is likely to "remain a very safe investment". "You only need to look at the economic expansion and growth in China, India and most other Asian countries to see that not only are they still the major producers and exporters in the world, but more and more, they are becoming the biggest investors," he explained.

Meanwhile, in Hong Kong, the economy is forecast to expand by up to five per cent during 2010, financial secretary John Tsang recently announced - making a move to the special administrative region even more attractive. It has been ranked the world's freest economy by the Index of Economic Freedom for 15 years in a row - in part because of its attractive taxation system - and is home to around seven million people.

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