New York City is considered the global financial hub as it is home to the world’s two most valuable stock exchanges and the most elite investment banking firms. But when it comes to currency trading and exchanging, New York City and the United States rank far behind London and the United Kingdom.
The daily value of all foreign currencies that exchange hands on a daily basis is approximately £4.73 trillion. Among that figure, UK’s excellent brokerages facilitate around £1.72 trillion worth of transactions.
The United Kingdom’s Dominance
There are several reasons why London and the United Kingdom dominate the global money transfer industry. The first has to do with the geographic proximity to the rest of the world. While traders and currency broker experts in New York City are asleep, professionals in London and across Asia are busy transacting with each other.
And when American traders and business people wake up and start the day, workers across the United Kingdom are still at their offices.
This alone isn’t reason enough to crown the UK as the leader of forex trading. The UK government is among the most stable in the world with a rich history of democracy, freedom, rule of law, and perhaps more importantly, a dedication towards economic development.
Equally important, the country’s official language of English — the global language of choice for commerce.
The 2016 Brexit election did little to impact the country’s finance industry. Quite the opposite holds true as some of the largest banks reiterated London as part of their long-term plans to address the global market.
Goldman Sachs, as an example, invested £1 billion for its London-based European HQ in the Square Mile region in 2019.
Société Générale announced in 2014 it will consolidate its London workers into one location and many expected the Brexit vote to prompt the French bank to look elsewhere. But in 2019, the company finalized its move into a new state-of-the-art building in Canary Wharf.
Perhaps one fact that best highlights the UK’s dominance in foreign exchange transactions has to do with the US dollar. According to data from 2018, nearly twice as many US dollars are traded in the UK as in the US.
The following year, forex trading activity stemming from London hit a record high. The Bank of England said in its semi-annual report forex trading in London was up 7% from the prior period a year ago to around £2 trillion.
The most recent report dated Jan. 26, 2021, notes the following facts and figures:
The average daily UK foreign exchange turnover was £1.46 trillion in October.
The USD/EUR currency exchange pair was the most commonly traded with an average daily turnover of £558 billion.
Trading activity in the EUR/GBP reached a historical all-time high.
The USD/CNY currency exchange pair also reached a record high.
Currency Brokerages For Regular People
The dominance of UK currency brokers extends beyond corporate clients transacting tens of millions of pounds at a time. In fact, the explosion of UK-based financial technology (fintech) companies over the years dominate the global competition.
TransferWise is among one of the most closely followed currency exchange companies. The London-based money transfer company boasts millions of users and was valued at around £4 billion.
The UK currency broker was born after two native Estonians met at a party in England. The two quickly realized they share an identical problem when it comes to exchanging money. By transacting with each other and ignoring a bank as a middleman, the two saved a lot of money. The two quickly realized their idea is a viable solution that can be scaled to become a global business.
TransferWise is one of many new unicorn companies — that is startups valued at $1 billion US or more. In fact, the UK is home to 45 unicorns, 18 of which are fintech companies.
Money transfer companies are a lot more popular in Europe than they are in America. There are a few reasons why this is the case.
The first has to do with the close proximity of countries to each other. Within a five-hour span, someone in the UK can travel to multiple European countries so there is an immediate need to exchange currencies. By contrast, a five-hour road trip in America means a family may not even leave their home state.
Europeans are much more open to travel than Americans so by default demand to exchange currencies is greater. In fact, US citizens ranked 60th out of more than 100 countries in their openness to travel the world. This isn’t an insult or jab at Americans, rather it is just one of the many cultural differences as Americans much prefer exploring their own country.
Americans that do travel abroad tend to avoid online money exchange. Surprisingly to many, one study shows that trust in banks surged during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The pandemic reinforced an already strong sense of loyalty a customer felt with their bank. It makes sense they would choose convenience and trust over saving money through cheaper money exchange options they aren’t familiar with.
Conclusion: Brexit Won’t Slow UK Money Transfer Industry
For years, many experts predicted that London and the UK would see their status as an economic powerhouse and a hub for currency exchanges tumble. But heading into the post-COVID recovery era, the UK’s advanced lead in administering vaccines gives it a massive advantage over its European peers that can’t go overlooked.
Regardless, the country’s tremendous advantage over the US in terms of money exchanges might be a gap that is too wide for anyone to catch up to. The dominance of UK currency brokers coupled with one of the world’s most advanced unicorn incubators may have secured UK’s financial importance for decades to come.
News
Rochdale has been named Greater Manchester’s ‘Town of Culture’ for 2025
Emily Sergeant
Rochdale has officially been named Greater Manchester’s Town of Culture for 2025.
Taking over the reins from Bolton – which held the title in 2024 – and following in the footsteps of Stockport before that, which held the title in 2023, and even hosted a massive ‘Town of Culture Weekender’ festival with 50+ free events to celebrate and bring its title year to a close, it’s now the turn of the north-eastern Greater Manchester borough of Rochdale.
Rochdale’s year will build on the town’s already-rich cultural history and international reputation as the home of the co-operative movement.
More than 35 arts organisations will be bringing together an ambitious programme of festivals, exhibitions, events, and performances throughout the year.
Unfamiliar with what the ‘Greater Manchester Town of Culture’ title is all about? It’s an accolade that’s handed out every year to different boroughs across the region.
Bury was the inaugural title-holder 2020 and held onto it in 2021 too due to the COVID pandemic, before being followed by Stalybridge in 2022, Stockport in 2023, and of course, Bolton in the year just gone.
The title celebrates Greater Manchester’s culture and heritage.
As well as getting a new title to shout about, it also sees the towns given a grant from the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) culture fund to help develop a programme of cultural events and activities throughout the year.
Rochdale has been named Greater Manchester’s ‘Town of Culture’ for 2025 / Credit: The Manc Group | Rochdale Council
In Rochdale’s case, you can expect the ‘very best local talent’, as this year is promising to put ‘people power’ centre stage, with residents helping to plan, develop, and deliver a lineup of creative activities, alongside a number of major events.
This includes the popular free days out for families, an exciting new urban arts festival, two different food and drink festivals, a lantern parade, the Ignite Fire Festival, a Pride parade, and so much more.
You can also expect live music performances, a new people’s gallery, and even some major international collaborations that are yet to be announced.
Rochdale is taking over the reins from Bolton, which held the title in 2024 / Credit: Rochdale Council
“Rochdale is a place with a rich cultural history, so it is great to name it Greater Manchester’s town of culture as it’s town hall and town centre enter a new era,” commented Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham as the borough was crowned this week.
“Rochdale submitted a fantastic bid for this which, was incredibly exciting and ambitious, while being firmly rooted in its local talent and deep history.
“We are definitely going to see the very best of what Rochdale has to offer over the next 12 months and people will come from far and wide to see it.”
Featured Image – Rochdale Council
News
The Lowry Theatre undergoes revamp following Biffa Award grant
Danny Jones
The Lowry in Salford Quays has had a bit of TLC with one of its biggest theatre spaces undergoing a pretty significant refurb this past month.
Following a well-deserved grant distributed via the Biffa Award, a multi-million-pound fund that helps to build communities and transform lives through community and environmental projects across the UK, the legendary local theatre received nearly £75k last year.
As a result, all 440 seats and various other aspects of The Lowry‘s Quays Theatre have now been renovated and refurbished.
The short story is, she looks more gorgeous than ever – see for yourself:
Being initially handed over in March 2024, The Lowry was awarded a total of £74,816 to reupholster seating in the venue’s Quays Theatre with new padding and fabric.
After almost 25 years of constant use as one of the most popular theatres in the North, the seats in the Quays Theatre were much in need of a refurb, and with work completed in December, Lowry visitors can now enjoy watching the venue’s wide range of theatre, dance, comedy and drama in comfort.
The work was actually carried out between July and December, with seats being carefully removed in batches and reupholstered off-site.
This was made possible due to the Biffa Award’s most recent ‘Cultural Facilities’ theme, which aims to improve recreation, interest and education, drawing funds from the UK government’s wider Landfill Communities Fund.
The old fabric and padding were disposed of sustainably, with lots of it being repurposed where possible to minimise waste and all the new materials used meet current guidance for safety and quality.
The Lowry’s Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Development, Gwen Oakden, said of the long overdue update:“It is so important that our audiences are able to enjoy our world-class performing arts programme in a comfortable and welcoming space.
“For many visitors to the Quays Theatre, this is their first experience of live performance – often to see a family show or as part of a school trip. We really want it to be the best experience possible, and for them to begin a lifelong relationship with Lowry.
“As a registered charity, without the generous support of this Biffa Award, for which we’re hugely grateful, we couldn’t have carried out this important work for our audiences.
As we head into our 25th Anniversary year, we are delighted to be able to welcome audiences and visitors can enjoy the beautiful and revived Quays Theatre.”
As for the Biffa side of things, Grants Manager Rachel Maidment added: “We are delighted to have supported The Lowry in refurbishing the Quays Theatre seating, ensuring audiences can continue to enjoy performances in comfort.
“Through Biffa’s Cultural Facilities theme, we fund projects that provide engaging and inspiring spaces for communities. The Lowry is a key cultural venue, and we’re proud that our funding, made possible through the government Fund, has helped enhance the experience for visitors for years to come.”
Like most Mancs, we love The Lowry, so here’s to hosting countless more theatregoers in the most comfortable seats possible for generations to come.
We’ve been to some brilliant performances around here of late.
The Manc -
6th March 2021 
