Exchange Square (Hong Kong)

Exchange Square (Chinese: 交易廣塲; Jyutping: gaau1 jik6 gwong2 coeng4) is a building complex located in Central, Hong Kong. It houses offices and the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. It is served by the Central and Hong Kong stations of the MTR metro system.

Exchange Square
交易廣塲
One and Two Exchange Square
General information
StatusComplete
TypeOffice
LocationHong Kong
Coordinates22°17′2″N 114°9′30″E
Construction started1983
Completed1988
Opening
  • Phases 1 & 2: 1985
  • Phase 3: 1988
CostWhole project: US$256,410,257
OwnerHongkong Land
Height
Roof188 m (617 ft)
Technical details
Floor count
  • Tower 1: 52
  • Tower 2: 51
  • Tower 3: 33
Floor areaTotal:
130,680 m2 (1,406,628 sq ft)
Lifts/elevators
  • Towers 1 & 2: 22 + 2
  • Tower 3: 12
Design and construction
ArchitectPalmer & Turner
DeveloperHong Kong Land
Main contractorGammon Construction
References
[1]

Most part of the Exchange Square is owned by Hong Kong Land, with the remaining portion owned by the Government. The building has three blocks, namely, One Exchange Square, Two Exchange Square and Three Exchange Square. A shopping block known as The Forum was redeveloped as an office building in 2011–14.

The ground level houses a large bus terminus, Central (Exchange Square) Bus Terminus.

Tenants

The property is the home of the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong since the 1980s. It also houses many international banking and law firms including Bank of Montreal, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Lloyd George Management, DLA Piper, Ropes & Gray, RPC, Latham & Watkins and Allen & Overy. Exchange Square is also home to the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre, the American Club of Hong Kong, and the consulates in Hong Kong of Argentina, Canada, and Japan.

Plot

Hong Kong Land tendered the Government $4.76 billion for the plot in February 1982, when the market was at a record high. Prices subsequently dropped, necessitating its debt to be restructured. In February 1983, HKL obtained an eight-year loan of $4 billion, a record. In December 1983, it announced that the plot was to be mortgaged to secure a $2.5 billion loan facility.[2] The second instalment of $2 billion on the plot was due in the financial year 1984/85[3]

Phase three

Development cost HK$750m, 32-storey 322,000-square-foot (29,900 m2) office tower, 32,000-square-foot (3,000 m2) mall, substructure contractor Gammon Hong Kong[4]

The Forum

The Forum (Chinese: 富臨閣) was a shopping complex at the podium level. From 2011 to 2014 it was redeveloped into a seven-storey office building with a floor area of 4,460 sq m. It is wholly occupied by Standard Chartered Bank. The plaza outside the forum includes a landscaped roof garden, stepped terraces and fountains, and a collection of sculptures by artists such as Henry Moore, Ju Ming and Dame Elizabeth Frank.[5][6]

  • Towers of One Exchange Square (back) and Two Exchange Square (front), December 14, 2005
  • One Exchange Square lobby
  • One Exchange Square garden
  • One Exchange Square entrance. The colour mural on the left and right sides is Landscape by Sidney Nolan.
  • Two Exchange Square, April 27, 2007
  • One and Two Exchange Square on June 1, 2008
  • Jardine House and Towers of One Exchange Square and Two Exchange Square, January 4, 2006
  • Three Exchange Square, June 12, 2010
  • Three Exchange Square seen from 2IFC, December 6, 2006
  • A water buffalo by English sculptor Elisabeth Frink stands in Exchange Square, September 12, 2007
  • The Forum at Exchange Square by architect Aedas,[7] January 2015

Nearby buildings

See also

References
  1. Exchange Square at Emporis. Retrieved 13 September 2007
  2. Lau Wai-kong, $2.5B STANDBY FACILITY – Land mortgages Phase One of Exchange Square, The Standard, 9 December 1983
  3. Michael Blendell, Bark worse than his bite, South China Morning Post, 1 March 1984
  4. John Mulcahy, Hongkong Land plans third tower, South China Morning Post, 29 January 1985
  5. Hongkong Land Official Site Archived 10 February 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  6. New way to The Forum Archived 22 August 2014 at the Wayback Machine The Standard. Retrieved 27 January 2012
  7. "The Forum, Hong Kong (Completion year: 2014)". HKIA. Retrieved 8 July 2014.
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