Although political and economic instability continues to be a bugbear, a new survey by MasterCard has ranked Budapest as the most developed business center in Central and Eastern Europe, ahead of regional rivals like Prague and Warsaw, but the Hungarian capital is also doing better compared to other financial hubs such as Vienna and Berlin, Világgazdaság reports.
Budapest placed 32nd for best business center globally in a survey evaluating 75 cities worldwide on the basis of a wide range of factors including legal and political frameworks, economic stability, ease of doing business, volume of financial activities, presence of financial institutions, reputations as business centers, contributions toward knowledge creation, and livability.
On aggregate, the Hungarian capital slipped 12 spots to 52nd place as a commerce center, ranking behind Prague (49th) and Moscow (51th) but ahead of Warsaw (59th), but this was mainly down to MasterCard adding 25 new entrants to last year’s list.
On the upside, Budapest outshone its regional rivals in terms of financial flow (banking, insurance and securities services) and logistics, while it was dragged down for legal and political stability.