GIFT City Rises to 37th in Global Financial Centres Index 40

Why in News?

GIFT City (Gujarat International Finance Tec-City) has climbed nine places to 37th globally in the Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI) 40, released in September 2026. GIFT City was ranked 46th in the previous edition. It has also entered the top 15 financial centres in the Asia-Pacific region, becoming the only Indian centre in this group. GIFT City also improved its global FinTech ranking from 29th to 26th.

Global Financial Centres Index

The Global Financial Centres Index evaluates the competitiveness and future prospects of financial centres worldwide. GFCI 40 was produced by Z/Yen Partners in London in partnership with the China Development Institute (CDI) in Shenzhen. The index is published twice a year. For GFCI 40, 139 financial centres were researched, with 117 included in the main index. The assessment used 144 instrumental factors and 39,531 assessments from 6,147 respondents to the GFCI questionnaire. The assessment combines quantitative data with professional perceptions of financial centres.

GIFT City’s Performance

GIFT City improved its overall ranking from 46th to 37th. It also moved from 29th to 26th in FinTech. The GFCI identifies several factors that influence the competitiveness of FinTech centres, including:

• Innovation-supporting ecosystem
• Access to finance
• Skilled talent
• Regulatory environment
• ICT infrastructure

It was also included among the 15 centres expected to become more significant over the next two to three years, based on survey responses.

GIFT City and India’s Financial Ecosystem

GIFT City is located in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, and hosts India’s first operational International Financial Services Centre (IFSC). The International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) was established under the IFSCA Act, 2019 and became operational in 2020. IFSCA functions as a unified regulator for financial products, financial services and financial institutions operating in India’s IFSC. Its regulatory areas include:

• Banking
• Capital markets
• Fund management
• Insurance
• FinTech
• Aircraft leasing
• Ship leasing
• Metals and commodities

GIFT City and Mumbai

GIFT City’s rise has occurred alongside an improvement in Mumbai’s ranking. Mumbai moved up three places to 49th in GFCI 40. The two centres serve different but complementary roles within India’s financial ecosystem, with GIFT City focusing strongly on international financial services and cross-border transactions.

Significance of GFCI 40 Ranking

The GFCI 40 report identifies digital infrastructure, cybersecurity resilience, FinTech and digital-asset businesses, anti-money-laundering frameworks and deeper capital markets as important priorities for financial centres over the coming years. GIFT City’s improving ranking reflects the expansion of its financial-services ecosystem and its growing integration of finance, technology and innovation.

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