Singapore passport is now the ‘world's most powerful'

It is the first Asian country to have grabbed the title.

Singapore's passport is the most powerful in the world as it clinched the top spot of the Passport Index' most powerful ranking with a visa-free score of 159.

This came after Paraguay eased its visa requirement for Singaporean passport holders.

Germany and Sweden, ranked second and third, with a score of 158 and 157, respectively.

The Passport Index developed by global financial advisory firm Arton Capital, ranks national passports by the cross-border access that they bring by assigning a "visa-free score" according to the number of countries a passport holder can visit visa-free or with visa on arrival.

"Visa-free global mobility has become an important factor in today's world," shared Armand Arton founder and president of Arton Capital."More and more people every year invest hundreds of thousands of dollars in a second passport to offer better opportunity and security for their families," added Arton.

Historically, the Top 10 most powerful passports in the world were mostly European countries, with Germany holding the lead for the past two years.

Other Asian passports in the Top 20 include those of South Korea, Japan and Malaysia.

"For the first time ever an Asian country has the most powerful passport in the world, " noted Philippe May, managing director of Arton Capital's Singapore office. "It is a testament of Singapore's inclusive diplomatic relations and effective foreign policy."

Here are the top cities in the world with the most powerful passports, according to the Passport Power Ranking:

159 - Singapore
158 - Germany
157 - Sweden, South Korea
156 - Denmark, Finland, Italy, France, Spain, Norway, Japan, United Kingdom
155 - Luxemburg, Switzerland, Netherlands, Belgium, Austria, Portugal
154 - Malaysia, Ireland, Canada, United States of America
153 - Austria, Greece, New Zealand
152 - Malta, Czech Republic, Iceland
150 - Hungary
149 - Slovenia, Slovakia, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia