OCBC is exploring the redevelopment of its iconic Chulia Street property, the bank said in a statement on Wednesday (Apr 3), confirming an earlier Business Times report.

“We are exploring the redevelopment of 63, 65 Chulia Street and 18 Church Street to rejuvenate a strategic area in the central business district,” said Emily Teo, head of group property management at OCBC, on Wednesday (Apr 3).

“Any redevelopment plans being explored will include preserving the rich heritage of OCBC Centre, a widely recognised iconic landmark in Singapore and South-east Asia designed by the late renowned architect IM Pei,” she added.

In a filing with the Singapore Exchange on Wednesday evening, OCBC added that there was no certainty that the plans being explored would result in a redevelopment, a transaction or other options.

OCBC Centre, at 65 Chulia Street, comprises a 50-storey tower and a car park block (with six storeys and two basement levels) completed in 1976. OCBC’s head office is located in the tower.

The bank went on to develop two extensions: OCBC Centre South at 18 Church Street, a seven-storey building with a basement completed in 1985, and the 15-storey OCBC Centre East at 63 Chulia Street, completed in 1996.

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The bank was responding to media queries following a report in The Business Times on Wednesday, which said the bank is understood to have put out a request for proposals last year to find a property consultant to help it identify a potential partner to carry out a redevelopment of the property. It is understood that JLL had been appointed for the job.

Banks are barred from engaging in property development under Singapore’s current banking regulatory framework, observers have noted.

OCBC would probably have to transfer the Chulia Street property to a partner that will redevelop it. After the project is completed, the partner would then transfer the asset back to OCBC.

When completed 48 years ago, OCBC Centre, at 198 metres, was the tallest building in South-east Asia. The tower, flanked by two rounded concrete cores, was designed in the Brutalist architectural style, favouring minimalist construction.