The Paradeplatz building served as Credit Suisse's headquarters for decades. UBS wants to turn it into a financial campus with about 4,000 workplaces. 

The property on Paradeplatz 8 fronts the same-named square generally considered the focal point of the country's financial center. Although the building served as Credit Suisse's headquarters before being rescued by UBS last year, it is more than just pure bricks and mortar - it is a symbol of Swiss finance.

UBS now owns the building. According to the Swiss daily newspaper «Blick» (German only), the country's largest bank wants to convert it into an extended financial campus with about 4,000 workplaces. «We want to concentrate our workforce in the middle of the city», the newspaper wrote, citing UBS CEO Sergio Ermotti. The property on Paradeplatz 8 will be an integral component of the wider scheme. The plan is to install workplaces on the higher floors while the ground levels will have room for shops and restaurants. As part of that, the bank is hoping to make the general surroundings around the symbolic square more lively than they are currently.

«A Signal for the city and location of Zurich»

The campus will also comprise the former Swiss Bank Corp building (SBC merged with the former Union Bank of Switzerland to form UBS in 1998) on Paradeplatz 6 as well as properties on the neighboring Baerengasse and Baerenhof. «The is probably not the most viable commercial solution but our decision was based on more than just costs», Ermotti maintained. UBS wants to make a statement with its plans: «It is also a signal for the city and the location of Zurich», the UBS head stated.

Former Swiss Bank Corp Building Up First

The headquarters of UBS will remain on Bahnhofstrasse 45. There were discussions about moving it to Paradeplatz 8, according to Ermotti, but those plans were quickly discarded.

The financial campus is expected to be ready starting in about two years. From early 2027, the former Swiss Bank Corp building will be ready for service. That will be followed by the renovation of Credit Suisse's former headquarters.