Michael Bloomberg, the New York mayor, has commissioned a “battle plan” to help Wall Street beat off the challenge from London and attract more overseas companies to its stock exchanges.
McKinsey, the management consulting firm, has been asked to examine London’s recent success, and to report back urgently with proposals to help “retain New York City's position as the financial capital of the world”.
Mr Bloomberg’s intervention comes amid a gathering backlash among American businesses to the Sarbanes-Oxley laws introduced in the wake of corporate scandals such as Enron. These laws, which require much more detailed auditing of company accounts, have added millions of dollars to the cost of floating and running a US-listed firm, and have acted as a deterrent to smaller companies in particular that might be considering a US float.
When Mr Bloomberg’s opposite number, Ken Livingstone, visited New York recently and was asked about his economic development strategy for the City of London, he answered in two words: “Sarbanes-Oxley”.
Daniel Doctoroff, Mr Bloomberg’s deputy mayor for economic development, said McKinsey would report back within two months with policy proposals and a comparison of those policies with initiatives planned in London. “We want to determine the greatest opportunities and challenges for New York City’s financial services sector, including those posed by the regulatory environment,” Mr Doctoroff said.
McKinsey is being paid up to $ 600,000 for the report, which will review the historical performance of the financial services sector from a global perspective. Wall Street bosses have become alarmed that London has won more than twice as many of the largest flotations of the past two years. The London Stock Exchange's smaller companies market, AIM, has also been booming thanks to overseas companies.
© The Independent
Key
Hover over the blue highlighted
text to view the acronym meaning
Hover
over these icons for more information
Comments:
No Comments for this Article