Banks may be keen to relocate from the centre of London.
Some of Britain’s biggest banks could be set to relocate to smaller premises in a bid to cut spending, increase efficiency and adhere to the latest regulations.
This is the suggestion of new research from CB Richard Ellis (CBRE), which found that three-quarters of banks with a presence in the City of London plan to reduce the amount of office space they take up over the next two years, the Financial Times reports.
Many are considering moving to regional premises rather than having large central offices in the nation’s capital, as it will be less expensive, plus staff can still communicate using video conferencing and similar technology.
Indeed, such a move could slash real estate costs by as much as 40 per cent, a valuable saving at a time when many financial institutions are having to cut jobs.
Currently, rents for City offices are approximately £55 per sq ft, up from £42.50 per sq ft in 2009.
"The pressure on the banks in recent years has undoubtedly had an impact on their real estate requirements and recovery in the sector is likely to be slow in an environment of tighter regulation," said CBRE’s central London tenant advisory group spokesperson Frances Warner-Lacey.
Although moving could cut out the problem of extortionate rents, it does pose another issue for banks that have had the same offices for years – what will they do with all the paperwork and confidential documents they have built up?
With figures from Reduce.org showing the average person working in an office uses 10,000 sheets of copy paper each year, the archives could be extensive.
One solution for both during the relocation process and afterwards could be to use services from Dajon Data Management. We offer document scanning and storage for companies of all sizes and all sectors to help our clients eliminate the cost and inconvenience of keeping hold of so much paper.
We can also shred documents once they have been digitised so there is no chance of them falling into the wrong hands – give us a call to find out more.