Santander Bank Polska, one of the largest financial groups and the largest bank with private capital in Poland, has become an anchor tenant of The Bridge, which is being built in the business center of Warsaw. The bank has signed a lease agreement with the developer and investor of the building – Ghelamco – for an area of approximately 24,500 sqm (nearly 21,000 sqm of usable area). This is the largest transaction on the Polish office market since 2022.
Santander Bank Polska will change its headquarters and move in 2025 to The Bridge, the latest project by Ghelamco. The skyscraper is being built in Warsaw's Wola district, at Plac Europejski, at the junction of Towarowa and Grzybowska streets. The bank will occupy the top 19 office floors with a total area of 24,500 sqm gross, as well as a sky terrace on the 40th floor of the building for an exclusive use. Moreover, a modern Santander Bank Polska branch will be located on the ground floor of the neighbouring Bellona building - part of The Bridge office complex.
“This is a breakthrough moment for our project, but also significant for the Polish office market. Santander Bank Polska has become an anchor tenant of The Bridge by selecting to lease half of the 40-storey skyscraper. We haven't had such a large office space lease transaction in Poland since 2022! This is proof that modern organizations, constantly striving for development and caring for the standard of the working environment, do not give up on top-class offices. ESG aspects were key for our client, which are a priority for us at The Bridge and are reflected at every stage of the project - from the construction process and materials used to solutions at the level of the building's operation once it is put into use. We would like to thank Santander for their trust and warmly welcome them to the group of Ghelamco tenants”, says Jarosław Zagórski, Managing Director of Ghelamco Poland.
“Moving to a modern office building located in the capital's business hub is part of our strategy, one of its elements is to ensure the best possible experience for our customers and employees. We also place great emphasis on implementing the Total Responsibility strategy. Therefore, when looking for a place for the new headquarters of Santander Bank Polska, we paid attention to long-term ESG solutions and modern technologies that not only help improve energy efficiency, but also support building positive employee experiences. The fact that The Bridge has a number of ecological and technological certificates, and is perfectly located, convinced us to choose this project for our main office in Poland”, says Paweł Dziedzina, Director of the Department of Work Environment Management at Santander Bank Polska.
Experts from Colliers advised the tenant in the transaction.
“The area around Rondo Daszyńskiego has been a popular location for banks for several years now, which is why we can talk about a hub created by companies from this sector. Santander Bank Polska will soon join it and will be located in one of the most modern and ecological buildings in the area. The choice of The Bridge as our client's headquarters was preceded by very detailed analyses of available properties and reliable recommendations taking into account the bank's guidelines. We are glad that we could support Santander in making such a key decision and participate in the largest transaction on the office market since Q1 2022”, says Paweł Skałba, Senior Partner, Director of the Office Space Department at Colliers.
Santander Bank Polska is the second institution which recently chose The Bridge as its headquarters. In August this year, Ghelamco signed a lease agreement with the French Institute, which will occupy 1,300 sqm in the Bellona building belonging to the office complex.
The Bridge is an office complex being built at Plac Europejski in Warsaw's Wola district, combining the historic building of the former Bellona Publishing House with a 40-storey skyscraper. In total, both buildings will provide 52,000 sqm of office space to the market.
In line with Ghelamco’s ESG strategy, The Bridge is to be energy neutral and powered by 100% clean energy. InBin application will analyze carbon footprint based on the weight of waste generated by tenants. Moreover, the building will implement vacuum drainage technology, which will minimize water consumption in toilets by up to 75% annually.
The Bridge was designed by Dutch architectural studio UNStudio in cooperation with Polsko Belgijska Pracownia Architektury PROJEKT. The planned completion date of the construction is Q1 2025.
