Cyprus is seeking to position itself as a stable European base for international financial services, as Invest Cyprus stepped up its pitch to investors, wealth managers and family offices at an event in London this week.

Speaking at the Financial Times, Invest Cyprus chairman Evgenios Evgeniou said the country had changed considerably in recent years and was increasingly attracting financial institutions looking for a base from which to serve wider international markets.

“Cyprus has transformed. It is now an attractive and secure base for international financial organisations, wealth management companies and family offices,” he told the Cyprus News Agency (CNA).

The London event, held for a second time at the FT’s offices, focused on financial institutions considering Cyprus for back-office operations, family offices and wealth management activities, while companies already established on the island were invited to discuss their own experience of investing and expanding there.

According to Evgeniou, Cyprus is seeking to compete through a combination of its legal and regulatory framework, tax environment, quality of life and relatively straightforward relocation process for companies and their employees.

He placed particular emphasis on access to skilled workers, saying international companies can recruit qualified Cypriot professionals while also bringing specialist staff from abroad.

The arrival of foreign companies and skilled professionals over the past four years, he said, has become an important part of the country’s economic growth.

“We are one of the fastest-growing economies in the European Union, with an A investment-grade rating. Cyprus offers stability and security in a geopolitically complex region,” Evgeniou said.

The central message to British and international investors, he added, was that “Cyprus has transformed.”

The discussion came as financial services companies reassess where they locate parts of their operations, with cost pressures, talent shortages and geopolitical uncertainty increasingly influencing decisions.

Participants heard that some firms are looking beyond established and increasingly expensive financial centres for locations able to provide qualified staff, regulatory certainty and competitive operating costs.

For family offices, wealth managers and entrepreneurs, the discussion also centred on legal and regulatory predictability, taxation and the ability to operate across markets from a stable jurisdiction.

Geopolitical tensions in the Middle East have added another consideration for companies with exposure to the region, increasing the focus on locations that can combine proximity with political and economic stability.

The event, titled ‘Scaling Financial Services Operations in the Eastern Mediterranean – Unlocking Growth through Talent, Connectivity and Back-Office Excellence‘, also examined whether smaller financial centres can secure enough specialised talent as digitalisation accelerates across the sector.

Participants discussed the regulatory and tax conditions needed to attract investment, as well as the infrastructure required for the Eastern Mediterranean to retain innovative companies as they grow, rather than simply attract them during their early stages.

Attention also turned to the factors influencing where investors choose to establish businesses and tax residency, including connectivity, the availability of expertise and the wider business environment.

The London gathering brought together UK wealth managers, investors, back-office specialists and policymakers.

Invest Cyprus said the event formed part of its wider effort to strengthen the island’s profile as an international financial centre and promote Cyprus as a European base for companies and investors operating across the Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East.