The Financial times and DIFC partner to host three world financial centres summits

A series of high-level summits featuring some of the biggest names in international finance will be launched this year under a new partnership between the Financial Times and the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC).
The first of three FT/DIFC World Financial Centres Summits will be held in Dubai in November, examining the key developments affecting the world’s leading financial centres and the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.
The second Summit will take place in London in 2008. The venue for the third location is to be determined.
Chief Executive of the Financial Times, John Ridding, said that with competition intensifying among the world’s financial capitals, there is strong interest in a high-level forum to discuss ways to attract capital and investment.
“The balance of power is shifting as new financial centres seek to challenge established players, as market consolidation increases and as regulation evolves”, said Mr Ridding.
“With the importance of establishing the right investment conditions to clinch new floats and listings, we expect strong interest in these global gatherings,” he said.
The summits – following on from the highly successful FT Asian Financial Centres Summit in Seoul in 2006, which attracted Alan Greenspan, Rudolph Giuliani and Gordon Brown – will draw the highest calibre speakers from around the world. Attendance to the event will be by invitation only.
Themes for discussion will include the key success factors for financial centres in today’s increasingly competitive global environment, comparisons between different regulatory regimes, the search for talent and the pressures of consolidation.
The Governor of the DIFC, Dr Omar Bin Sulaiman, said that Dubai’s positioning at the crossroads of east and west had been pivotal to the emirate’s growth, and that innovation had also played a crucial role in establishing itself as a financial centre.
Dr Bin Sulaiman said: “The choice to host the first FT/DIFC World Financial Centres Summit in Dubai is reflective of the way in which the emirate has come to epitomise the globalisation of the financial services industry. This meeting, and the two that follow, will provide unique opportunities for industry peers from across the world to exchange ideas, discuss best practices and share strategies for growth. I’m extremely proud that Dubai will host this meeting, which will help bridge existing gaps among financial centres from various regions of the world.”
The 2007 Summit will be the flagship event of DIFC Week in late November.
For more about the Summit, contact [email protected]