US Bank commits to London with £3B tower development

The US banking giant JPMorgan Chase is moving forward with plans for a major London expansion, unveiling designs for a new headquarters building with an estimated £3 billion cost that would house up to 12,000 employees at the Riverside development in Canary Wharf.

JPMorgan Chase has unveiled plans to construct a three-million-square-foot headquarters in London’s Canary Wharf, designed to accommodate up to 12,000 employees. The tower, which would serve as the bank’s principal UK headquarters and largest EMEA presence, has an estimated cost of £3 billion and is expected to take six years to build pending regulatory approvals and favorable business conditions.

Foster + Partners, the British architecture firm behind JPMorgan’s 270 Park Avenue headquarters in New York, will design the Riverside development site building. Canary Wharf Group is co-developing the project, with Sir George Iacobescu providing independent advisory services.

An independent economic impact study estimates the project could contribute approximately £9.9 billion to the UK economy over six years, generating more than 7,800 jobs across construction and related sectors.

“London has been a trading and financial hub for more than a thousand years,” said Jamie Dimon, Chairman and CEO. “The UK government’s priority of economic growth has been a critical factor in helping us make this decision.”

JPMorgan will make interim upgrades to its existing 25 Bank Street facility during construction.