JP Morgan To Erect New European Headquarters in London

JP Morgan Chase & Co., the third-largest American bank, is in talks to build a new 1 million square foot European headquarters in London's City financial district.

The proposed building would have four trading floors, JP Morgan said yesterday in an e-mailed statement. At 72,000 square feet each, they would be the largest in London.

JP Morgan entered exclusive talks with the City of London municipality and real estate developer Hammerson Plc. The three parties have 90 days to agree on terms, the statement said.

Property Week reported in February that the JP Morgan might move its new headquarters to Canary Wharf because of the need for space. JP Morgan's London operations are currently based in several buildings. The proposed new headquarters, to be built between

London Wall and Fore Street, would house JP Morgan's London investment banking business. The asset management and treasury and securities units would remain nearby, the New York-based bank said.

[JP Morgan is said to be in negotiations with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to build a new headquarters in New York City across the street from the former World Trade Center site. An official from the Port Authority to The New York Sun that he was unaware of any connection between the London deal and the New York plans.]

Kohn Pedersen Fox architects, designer of the World Bank headquarters in Washington, D.C., and Tokyo's Roppongi Hills tower, and KKS Strategy drew up a preliminary design based on JP Morgan's specifications, Hammerson said on the Regulatory News Service. Hammerson said it expects work to start on the site next year.