This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Deutsche Bank headquarters opens
05/11/2001
The new £30 million Deutsche Bank headquarters in
Edinburgh was officially opened today by First Minister
Henry McLeish.
By investing in a custom-built new building Deutsche
Bank, which has had a presence in Scotland for 25 years,
was underlining the country's growing status as a key
player in the global financial services sector, the FM
said.
Mr McLeish continued:
"The new office is the latest phase in Deutsche Bank's
25 year association with Edinburgh that I am certain will
go from strength to strength into the future. Deutsche
Bank's commitment to its Edinburgh operations is a great
boost to Scotland's financial sector and is testament to
the Executive's recognition of and commitment to vital
aspect of our economy."
The £30m custom-built office block on the north side of
the city was necessitated by the growth of the bank's
Corporate and Investment Banking division, which is
expected to create up to 500 new jobs in the next five
years of which around 160 are already in place.
The bank currently employs around 1160 staff, 850 of
which are based in the new 146,000 sq ft office in Ferry
Road, Edinburgh, and the others in its Queen Street
offices, which it has occupied for more than 20 years.
Deutsche Bank continue to occupy the building adjacent to
the new one at Crewe Toll, but have yet to make a decision
about its future use.
Lord Levene, Chairman of Deutsche Bank Scotland,
said:
"We chose to invest in our Edinburgh operation as it
forms a crucial part of our corporate and investment
banking division. We are keen to play a major role within
the financial sector in Scotland and look forward to
continuing our long and successful association with the
city for many years to come. We are delighted that Mr
McLeish has taken time to be with us today and believe it
is an endorsement of role in helping maintain Scotland's
leading position on the international investment
stage."
David Crichton, Chief Executive of Scottish Enterprise
Edinburgh and Lothian, added:
"We welcome Deutsche Bank's decision to further invest
in their Edinburgh division. We are committed to enhancing
Edinburgh's reputation as a world class business location
and the expansion of Deutsche Bank's operation here is
indicative of the city's blossoming financial sector."
Deutsche Bank is one of the leading international
financial service providers. It has more than 98,000
employees, and serves more than 12 million customers in
more than 70 countries worldwide. Almost 50 % of the bank's
staff work outside Germany.
In the year ended March 2001, 102 inward investment
projects involving planned investment of £1,763 million and
the expected creation of, or safeguarding of more than
14,000 jobs were attracted to Scotland by Locate in
Scotland and the Scottish Executive
Scottish Enterprise is the main economic development
agency for Scotland covering 93% of the population from
Grampian to the Borders. The Scottish Enterprise Network
consists of Scottish Enterprise and 12 Local Enterprise
Companies. Working in partnership with the private and
public sectors the Network aims to build more and better
businesses, to develop the skills and knowledge of Scottish
people, and to encourage innovation to make Scottish
business internationally competitive. The Scottish
Enterprise Network Strategy has set four main goals for the
Scottish economy, including helping Scotland to develop and
foster innovative, farsighted organisations.
On October 4, 2001, Wendy Alexander, Minister for
Enterprise and Lifelong Learning unveiled "Scotland: A
Global Connections Strategy" as part of the Executive's
guiding principles for the Enterprise Networks, "A Smart
Successful Scotland." It set out a radical new approach to
establish Scotland as a world class business partner in the
globally connected economy of the 21st Century, including
the creation of a new body, Scottish Development
International (SDI), formed by the merging of Locate in
Scotland and Scottish Trade International.