According to the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF), the financial sector regulator, 26,140 people were employed in the banking sector in 2007, close to one-fifth of the working population. At the end of the first quarter of 2008, 156 banks were registered on the official list, the vast majority subsidiaries of larger international banks from other European countries with a few from further afield. Germany has the largest representation with 43 banks, followed by Belgium/Luxembourg with 21, France 15 and Italy and Switzerland with 13 each.
The appeal of Luxembourg is its advantageous legal and fiscal framework, tight banking secrecy, technological infrastructure and geographical location. The banks focus on cross-border business, private banking, asset management, fund administration and interbank markets.
