‘There was a point where centres in Africa, Asia and other parts of the world started saying, “hang on, we have lots of parties from this region doing international arbitration but they’re all going to London, Paris, Geneva – we should have some of it here”,’ recalls Herbert Smith Freehills London-based global arbitration partner and president of the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA), Paula Hodges QC.
Over the past decade we have seen the rise of alternative international arbitration seats, particularly in Asia where Singapore and Hong Kong have steadily grown in popularity. But in 2021, for the first time, Singapore was named the top choice of seat for parties to international arbitration alongside London in a study conducted by Queen Mary University of London and White & Case.
