The Changing Landscape of International Financial Centers in the Twenty-First Century: Cross-border Mergers and Acquisitions in the Global Financial Network

We conduct an analysis of cross-border financial sector mergers and acquisitions (M&As) between 2000 and 2017 to explore the changing landscape of international financial centers (IFCs) and the spatial concentration of decision-making power in the Global Financial Network (GFN). Our analysis starts with time zones, showing a slow rise of IFCs in the Asia-Pacific, decline in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, and resilience in the Americas. We then identify which IFCs are net targets and net acquirers in M&As before and after the global financial crisis as well as which IFCs switch position between net target and net acquirer. Homing in on key groups of IFCs in the GFN, we show the persistent high profile of the New York and London axis of global finance, the important roles of Singapore and Hong Kong as mid-shore IFCs in Asia, and the continued significance of Gulf and offshore IFCs. These findings not only showcase M&A data as valuable analytical tools in exploring the geographies of finance but address a persistent theoretical gap concerning how power moves, concentrates, and is exercised as part of the GFN.