Barclays splashes £750m on Canary Wharf base in ‘strong endorsement’ of London
Barclays has taken control of its global headquarters based out of Canary Wharf in a £750m deal hailed as a “strong endorsement” of the financial district and the capital itself.
The blue-chip lender has entered a long-term leasehold interest agreement with Canary Wharf Group that grants the bank to use the property – based at One Churchill Place – for up to 999 years.
The deal is expected to be neutral to the bank’s CET1 ratio, a key metric for a lender’s financial health.
Barclays’ original lease was set to expire in 2039 but it said the fresh acquisition will pave the way for ongoing investment in its workplace and enable a flexible space for colleagues as “working patterns and business needs continue to evolve”.
“This acquisition gives us long-term certainty, greater flexibility over our London footprint and reinforces our continued confidence in London as one of the world’s leading global financial centres,” Barclays boss CS Venkatakrishnan said.
Shobi Khan, chief executive of the Canary Wharf Group, said: “Barclays’ decision to acquire its global headquarters at One Churchill Place is a strong endorsement of both Canary Wharf and London.”
Canary Wharf’s resurgence
The Isle of Dogs has enjoyed a major resurgence over the last year, attracting all branches of the financial services industry.
Payments juggernaut Visa laid out plans to switch its European headquarters to Canary Wharf in a move that will see the firm occupy a 300,000 square foot for a 15-year term at One Canada Square.
Fintech unicorn Zopa Bank also set out plans last year to double its office footprint with a new headquarters in the Docklands.
The new office, located at 20 Water Street in Canary Wharf, will span 44,000 square feet and host Zopa’s 900 current employees.
JP Morgan is also tipped to give the area its largest boost with its biggest tower ever – if the tax incentive is there.
The US banking behemoth announced plans for the 3m square feet tower in the aftermath of the Budget, where banks dodged a highly-speculated tax raid. Rachel Reeves touted the investment as a “multi-billion pound vote of confidence in the UK economy”.
The project is expected to inject as much as £10bn into the local economy and create an additional 7,800 jobs across construction and other local industries. Once finished it will house up to 12,000 and serve as the bank’s main headquarters in UK and is biggest presence across Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
But the bank has continued to warn the skyscraper would only go ahead should the government maintain a favourable tax environment.
A report from Tower Hamlets local council revealed JP Morgan had lobbied for a “business rates incentive over a period of years”.
The government has also warned the local authority that the bank was “unlikely to progress” on the new tower “without clarity and certainty” on its tax bill.