May 14, 2009

Singapore is ranked as the most attractive city for mobile wealth in Asia

Scorpio Partnership (http://www.scorpiopartnership.com/), the leading business strategy advisor to the wealth management industry, has presented the world’s first index judging the attractiveness of the most popular financial centres to the mobile wealthy.
The Mobile Wealthy Residency Index (MWRI) is the result of qualitative research by Scorpio Partnership with senior advisors to the world’s mobile wealthy. The summary of the research is following:


• Switzerland still takes top spot as the most attractive jurisdiction for residency for the international mobile wealthy individuals and families due to its “rounded offer”;
• London, in second spot, has been damaged by the UK Government’s aggressive fiscal moves to penalise the mobile wealthy community;
• Singapore’s rapid development and implementation of a modern framework with attractive policies sees it take third spot. Singapore is ranked as the most attractive destination for world mobile wealth in Asia;
• The mobile wealthy are choosing a jurisdiction in which to reside on a far wider range of factors than just the headline tax rates;
• A clear distinction has emerged between the large “all-in” global centres such as Switzerland and Singapore and the smaller “niche” centres such as Jersey, Monaco and Cayman.

In today’s economic environment, where wealth, taxation and the offshore environs are seemingly etched into every discussion in the wealth management industry, the Scorpio team has pooled the collective knowledge and thoughts of the advisory community to measure where the mobile wealthy judge to be the best jurisdictions to meet their wide ranging demands.
According to the research Singapore is a demonstration that the East has risen fast as a destination for the mobile wealthy. This is a very positive reflection of this City’s growth plans which have seen it put in place a successful framework over the last decade implementing international best practice. Spurred on by the experience of the Asian financial crisis it has done much to make itself attractive to the mobile HNW community. Singapore is viewed by the mobile wealthy as the hub from which to do business in and throughout Asia and the Government has moved to make its fiscal environment attractive in the international environment.

11 CRITERIA
The MWRI is a ranking of the 11 centres consistently described by the mobile wealthy and their advisors as the most attractive locations in which to live and work. The Scorpio team examined each across 11 criteria of competitiveness identified by the mobile wealthy as key drivers in their decision making process when choosing somewhere to live. Each jurisdiction was then scored through a ombination of qualitative and quantitative measures. Singapore was ranked to be the first on such criteria like Employment and business opportunities and security, to be the second in tax and immigration policies and legal considerations, to be the third in economic and political stability factor.

There is also clear distinction between the large “all-in” global centres such as Switzerland and Singapore and the smaller niche centres such as Jersey, Guernsey, Isle of Man, Cayman and Monaco. While these latter locations are rated among the top 11 locations for the mobile wealthy community and often offer them preferential treatment and opportunities, as one they struggle to compete with the major centres that can offer a wider and deeper range of benefits related to business, lifestyle, property and a concentration of other mobile wealthy residents with the same expectations, outlook and demands.

For further information on research, please look: http://www.scorpiopartnership.com/pdf/scorpio-pr_hnwdestinationsindex_may2009.pdf

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