ABSTRACT
In April 1986 the Hongkong and Shanghai Bank opened its new headquarters. It is a building of unusual charm which contains virtually no standard construction elements; its components were all developed from scratch. It is also a building that emphasizes the outstanding position occupied by the Chinese-British territory as a whole and by the corporation itself (the most important bank of the Far East and the central bank of Hong Kong) in the international financial world. The Bank is of vital importance for the functioning of the colony in the difficult period until the year 1997, when Hong Kong will be returned to China, and it fulfills its role in one of the most expensive buildings in the world, thus also demonstrating complete confidence in the future of Hong Kong.
