London has long been a magnet for the world’s rich. The city has everything one could wish for in a metropolis. It is a financial center of course, but also a renowned center of art and culture, both high-end and popular. It boasts beautiful architecture and fantastic open green spaces, probably more than any city of comparable size in the world. History comes alive in its streets, and each of the hundreds of neighborhoods has its own character. In recent years, London’s popularity has grown, especially among the super-rich.

Harsh economic winds have blown across the world, but London property prices haven’t taken the hit experienced elsewhere. Therefore, although expensive, London property is seen as a good investment by the very rich. Recent governments have enhanced London’s attractions by maintaining tax regimes, both in terms of income tax, capital gains tax and property tax, that have been unusually kind to the wealthy.

The effect that the presence of such a large and wealthy elite has had in recent years is reflected not only in inflated property prices, but also in other spheres, particularly the fine arts. Like property, art can serve as a haven for investors who have been turned away from the stock market by recent events.

A location in London is becoming essential for more and more international art galleries, especially those in New York. For example, Larry Gagosian, widely considered the world’s leading art dealer, already has two galleries in London, and Zwirner and Pace have also arrived. Michael Werner, who represents the wildly popular artist Peter Doig, has opened a gallery on Upper Brook Street, and others plan to do the same.

The trend is gaining momentum as well-known artists want to be sure that their work will be exhibited on the London market. Top collectors from Russia, the Middle East and Asia are often more at home in the cosmopolitan atmosphere of the UK capital than in New York, and these are the collectors with a lot of money to spend. Gagosian’s established presence in London is seen as a serious threat by other New York gallery owners with no London branches.

The influx has meant that existing UK galleries now need to wake up to more competition on their doors, as foreign galleries move to the city. In the end though, the trend should be a good one for everyone involved in the London art market.

London has always been a center of creative activity, the raw material of the art market. Now, along with the city’s overt attractions for the wealthy, the growth of major exhibition events in London, for example the Frieze exhibition in Regents Park, has also contributed to the city’s development as one of the art markets. Most important in the world. Collectors enjoy these black-tie events, which they attend with VIP status, and the accompanying social whirl is also part of the attraction.

It seems that with everything going for it, the art world in London is destined to become more and more important internationally.