Shenzhen Stock Exchange

The new headquarters for the Shenzhen Stock Exchange (SZSE) has been completed in Shenzhen’s Central Business District. The 180,000 sqm building is OMA’s next completed building in China after the CCTV Headquarters in Beijing. 

Defying the conventional building typology of tower-on-podium, SZSE’s three-storey base is cantilevered 36 m above the ground, allowing for a generous public space below and a lush roof garden on top. The raised podium contains the listing hall and offices of the Stock Exchange; in its elevated position, it can “broadcast” the activities of the stock market to the entire city. 

While the generic square form of the tower blends in with the surrounding homogenous buildings, the façade of SZSE is differentiated through its materiality: a translucent layer of patterned glass wraps the tower grid and raised podium, rendering the façade mysterious and enigmatic, while revealing the construction behind. The façade changes continually with the weather, becoming a reflection of its environment. 

The SZSE project was led by OMA partners Rem Koolhaas and David Gianotten, and associate Michael Kokora, in collaboration with partners Ellen van Loon and Shohei Shigematsu.  Rem Koolhaas: “The Shenzhen Stock Exchange embodies the Pearl River Delta’s phenomenal transformation over the past thirty years. We are greatly excited about the building from an architectural standpoint, but I believe its true significance emerges when viewed in an economic, political, and ultimately social context. We are immensely honoured to contribute to Shenzhen’s 21st century landscape.” 

Construction was overseen by OMA Asia’s Hong Kong office and OMA’s on-site office in Shenzhen, working day-to-day with the client and contractors throughout the construction process. OMA’s team consisted of over 75 architects at various points in the design and construction phases. SZSE was developed in collaboration with the local design institute SADI, and consultants DHV, Inside Outside, L&B and Arup. OMA won the competition for SZSE in 2006 and construction began in October 2008. OMA is currently designing a number of other buildings in China, including the Tencent Headquarters in Beijing and the Prince Bay Masterplan in Shenzhen.   

The New Headquarters for the Shenzhen Stock Exchange
Client: Shenzhen Stock Exchange
Site: 39,000 sqm, in the downtown area of Shenzhen at the meeting point of the north-south axis between Mount Lianhua and Binhe Boulevard, and the east-west axis of Shennan Road, Shenzhen's main artery
Programme: Total 265,000 sqm; 180,000 sqm above ground: Shenzhen Stock Exchange’s offices, Listing Hall, conference centres, a Chinese art gallery, a technical operations centre, canteen, and a restaurant / club, rental offices, a registration & clearing house, a securities information company, and a retail area; 85,000 sqm below ground.
Partners in charge: Rem Koolhaas and David Gianotten, in collaboration with Ellen van Loon and Shohei Shigematsu
Associate in charge: Michael Kokora
On Site Team: Yang Yang, Wanyu He, Daan Ooievaar, Joanna Gu, Vincent Kersten, Yun Zhang
AMO: Todd Reisz, Brendan McGetrick
Level Acoustic: DHV Building and Industry: Bertie van de Braak, Caroline Kaas, Renz van Luxemburg, Theo Rijmakers
Landscape: Inside Outside: Petra Blaisse, Rosetta Elkin, Aura Melis, Jana Crepon with Laura Baird and Carmen Buitenhuis
Completion: October 2013