London: What's Going On?

The news feed is filled with stories about the decline of London and the UK in general. If reports are to be believed, hordes of unassimilated migrants go unpunished for rape, murder, and other mayhem while armed police arrest comedians for tweets and residents for waving the Union Jack. Violence against Jews is causing Jewish citizens to emigrate from the U.K. If Britain is collapsing, what are we to make of this?

London: new towers springing next to the old (Zuma/WSJ)

Apple and Citadel Fuel London Office Boom

The office market in London’s ancient commercial quarter—known simply as the City—is booming, fueled by an influx of American law and finance firms, a growing tech scene and demand for the swankiest spaces to lure workers back to their desks.

The boom shows Britain’s finance industry has defied fears of a post-Brexit exodus. Despite losing some business and financiers after the U.K. left the European Union, London still hosts by far the biggest banking and capital markets in Europe.

The buoyant market also reflects the district’s broadening appeal. For decades the area was a bastion of finance and insurance. Now tech companies—including Apple, TikTok and several thousand smaller firms—vie for space, drawn in part by the prospect of easy access to potential investors.

“London, as a location for international businesses, seems to have really proven its resilience,” said Martin Towns, who runs M&G’s $43 billion real-estate business. “The City has a renewed level of vibrancy.”

Finance companies and Big Tech are not known for taking extraordinary risks, so what's going on with the $billions pouring into London? As an Anglophile, I hope that fears of its death have been greatly exaggerated.