Hip multinational firms flood Singapore's CBD as bank offices shrink

Google, Twitter and L’Oreal are among the new occupants.

Gone are the days when the Central Business District was the territory of suit-clad men and dressed-up women. As banks continue to cut costs by downsizing their offices, a wave of new multinational firms is flooding the CBD with young people dressed in shorts and flip flops.

A report released today by JLL showed that Asia’s financial heart is beating to a new beat, as Singapore is seeing a significant shift in the tenant mix for office space in the central business district.

Three industry groups dominate this new mix: e-commerce, consumer products and insurance. Developers and landlords have also learned a valuable lesson in the financial crisis and are also looking to make sure they have a more balanced range of industries in new buildings.

Google, for instance, has expanded six times and now has its headquarters for the Asia Pacific region spanning four floors in Asia Square, coupled with a 400-person canteen that feeds “Singagooglers” three times a day for free.

“You have this very bizarre dichotomy of Citibank bankers in their shiny shoes and guys in flip flops and shorts in the same elevator,” Hugh Andrew, the head of asset management for the Asia Pacific at BlackRock, says. BlackRock owns the building via one of its funds.

Here’s more from JLL
Twitter, Booking.com and e-Bay have all been opening new offices or expanding existing ones. PayPal has even placed its international headquarters in the Lion City, Facebook is looking to double its space and LinkedIn is taking up 50,000 square feet vacated by Barclays.

Singapore’s pleasant lifestyle has made it a draw for companies looking to attract top talent. For instance, the cosmetics company L’Oreal moved many of its Asian operations from Shanghai to Singapore, one motive being the need to retain senior staff who demand better schooling and standards of living for their families.

General Motors moved its Asian headquarters from Shanghai, taking over 30,000 square feet in Singapore from the Bank of America Merrill Lynch. The insurer Aon is also building its Asia Pacific hub in Singapore and toy maker, Lego, is in the Marina Bay Financial Centre.

One of the main drivers of the growth in industries such as consumer products and e-commerce is Asia’s rising affluence, particularly in emerging economies, according to Valerie Wong, the general manager of leasing at the Singapore-based developer GuocoLand. Guoco Tower, now under development in the company’s Tanjong Pagar Centre, has sparked interest from a similar mix of new media and insurance firms as well as companies in high finance.

That tower, two years away from completion, is part of a broader integrated development called Tanjong Pagar Centre which, when completed, will be Singapore’s tallest building comprising business hotel, luxury apartments, F&B and retail and a unique urban park.

Tanjong Pagar, an established part of Singapore’s CBD is currently undergoing a major government backed urban regeneration which Guoco Tower at Tanjong Pagar Centre will be the anchor development for the area. In addition to this exciting new development there are also new office buildings, luxury residential, retail and F&B being added to the area.