Irish Stock Exchange applies for planning in €10m expansion bid
THE Irish Stock Exchange (ISE) has lodged plans for a state-ofthe-art financial services hub as part of a €10m expansion plan for its Dublin headquarters.
The move follows the ISE last year acquiring a landmark building at Foster Place in Dublin to facilitate the expansion.
Staff numbers have grown by 40pc to 114 in the past number of years.
The building on Dublin’s Anglesea Street which houses the Stock Exchange is a protected structure and the overall gross office floor space of the amalgamated buildings, including the new proposed floor space, will be around 3,274 sq metres.
The plan includes a total of 1,434 sq metres in gross new office floor space in the proposed rear extension to the Armoury Building and in a new link building between the Armoury building and 24-28 Anglesea Street.
“The plans for our enhanced HQ allows us to develop a modern headquarters designed for the future needs of the ISE whilst retaining our strong historic links with the College Green area,” said ISE director of strategy Aileen O’Donoghue.
“The plan accommodates up to 50pc more staff and provides state-of-the-art facilities giving us the space we need for the expansion of our business and greater scope for public engagements.”
She added: “We are excited about this development which we believe will rejuvenate Foster Place and enable the ISE to maintain its business links with the area for many years to come.”
The ISE’s businesses now span 80 countries with over 33,000 securities and over 4,100 issuers from multiple sectors listing on its markets.
Once completed, it is envisaged that the enhanced HQ building will offer significantly greater scope for public engagements.
The planning application is viewed by the ISE’s management, board and shareholders as a vote of confidence in the business and future of the ISE.
Anglesea Street has been home to a stock exchange business for longer than New York’s Wall Street.
The €10m investment would allow the ISE to continue to operate from its current building, which was purpose built to house the exchange over 135 years ago.
The ISE believes that the application will deliver a significant stimulus to the College Green area and, in particular, the rejuvenation of Foster Place.
The most recent accounts for the ISE, headed by chief executive Deirdre Somers, show that it recorded pre-tax profits of €6.2m in 2014.
This followed the business recording revenues of €24.9m.
The ISE enjoyed a record year of activity in 2014 in its equity trading and debt listing markets.
A decision on the application is due by Dublin City Council in eight weeks. However, due to the scale of the project, it is likely that council planners will seek further information on the proposal.