GFCI ranking climbs 9 spots in 5 years, from 16th in 2021 to 7th
Seoul hits record 7th in fintech; city reputation jumps to 3rd worldwide
Oh accelerates push for 'global top 3 city' goal under his new term
Mayor recalls CNN weather snub: 'I was obsessed with branding'
Seoul brand now 'powerful growth engine' for South Korea's economy
Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said Thursday that Seoul's rise to seventh place in the Global Financial Centres Index marks only the beginning of a larger ambition. "Seoul's journey toward becoming a global top-3 city is only now truly starting," he said.
Oh has been accelerating his push to make Seoul a top-three financial hub alongside London and New York — the central goal of his current term. He unveiled the "G3 Seoul Plan" on Sept. 10 and announced a related organizational restructuring Thursday.
In a Facebook post titled "When you're obsessed, you get results," Oh said Seoul had "leapt nine spots in just five years from 16th place in 2021, firmly entering the upper tier of the world's financial cities." He added that Seoul's record-high seventh-place finish in fintech "once again proves that Seoul is growing into a hub of digital finance."
In the 40th GFCI report released by London-based consultancy Z/Yen, Seoul ranked seventh among 139 cities worldwide — up one place from eighth in the 39th assessment in March, maintaining a top-10 position for four consecutive years. New York ranked first and London second, followed by Hong Kong, Singapore, Shanghai and Tokyo.
The GFCI is a financial center competitiveness index published every March and September by Z/Yen and the China Development Institute. It draws on five categories — business environment, human capital, infrastructure, financial sector development and city reputation — combined with a survey of financial professionals worldwide.
Oh noted in particular that Seoul's city reputation score jumped six places, from ninth to third globally. "City reputation is an indicator that measures a city's brand value, attractiveness and innovation," he said. "It shows that the most powerful asset driving Seoul's financial competitiveness is the 'Seoul' brand itself." Seoul also reached a record seventh place in the fintech category.
Oh recalled an episode from his first term as Seoul mayor in 2008, when he noticed that CNN's global weather forecast included Tokyo and Beijing but not Seoul. He said he asked the network to add Seoul, only to be told it was possible — for a fee. "I still cannot forget the humiliation and despair I felt that day," he said. "In that moment, I resolved that I would make Seoul the central city of Asia without fail."
He went on to cite examples such as hosting a snowboard World Cup at Gwanghwamun Square, saying, "I was obsessed with branding."
"I was convinced that a powerful brand is the most efficient economic infrastructure and the foundation of the future," Oh said. "People seek out cities that are great to live in, and capital flows to cities that are attractive. Finance, tourism, business attraction, startups — ultimately, they all dance on the appeal of a brand."
"Eighteen years after that shocking CNN moment, Seoul's brand has grown beyond a simple city image into a powerful growth engine that drives South Korea's economy and leads its future," he said. "But I am still hungry. Seoul's journey toward becoming a global top-3 city is only now truly starting."
Oh said the standard for a world-class city does not rest on brand and appeal alone. "It must be a city where the quality of life and happiness of every single resident is at the highest level in the world — a city where people around the globe associate the name 'Seoul' not just with attraction and innovation, but with a better life," he said.
ken@heraldcorp.com
