Bank of China Building

Save

Originally established in 1897, the Bank of China relocated its headquarters from Beijing to Shanghai in the 1920s. Although the bank has occupied this address since 1923, the present building was only begun in 1935 and was originally designed to be the tallest building in the city at 33 storeys high. The Sino-Japanese War interrupted construction and it finally opened in 1942, its front door guarded by a magnificent pair of art-deco lions.

It's the only Chinese-designed building along the Bund.

Transportation

metro: East Nanjing Rd

Contact

Address

23 East Zhongshan No 1 Rd. 中山东一路23号

Suggest an edit to this attraction

Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Jade Buddha Temple
2.64 MILES
One of Shanghai’s few active Buddhist monasteries, this temple was built between 1918 and 1928. The highlight is a transcendent Buddha crafted from pure…
Shanghai Tower
1.02 MILES
China’s tallest building dramatically twists skywards from its footing in Lujiazui. The 121-storey, 632m-tall, Gensler-designed Shanghai Tower topped out…
Tianzifang
2.44 MILES
Tianzifang and Xintiandi are based on a similar idea – an entertainment complex housed within a warren of lòngtáng (弄堂, alleyways). Unlike Xintiandi,…
Yuyuan Gardens & Bazaar
0.89 MILES
With its shaded alcoves, glittering pools churning with fish, plus pavilions, pines sprouting wistfully from rockeries, and roving packs of Japanese…
Xintiandi
1.57 MILES
With its own namesake metro station, Xintiandi has been a Shanghai icon for over a decade. An upmarket entertainment and shopping complex modelled on…
The Bund
0.12 MILES
Symbolic of concession-era Shanghai, the Bund was the city’s Wall Street, a place of feverish trading and fortunes made and lost. Originally a towpath for…
Qībǎo
9.92 MILES
If you tire of Shanghai's incessant quest for modernity, this tiny town is only a hop, skip and metro ride away. An ancient settlement that prospered…
Shanghai World Financial Center
1.1 MILES
Although trumped by the adjacent Shanghai Tower as the city’s most stratospheric building, the awe-inspiring 492m-high Shanghai World Financial Center is…

View more attractions

Nearby attractions

1. Yokohama Specie Bank

0.02 MILES

One of several buildings along the Bund designed by British architecture firm Palmer & Turner, the Yokohama Specie Bank was built in 1924 mixing…

2. Peace Gallery

0.04 MILES

This intriguing little museum, in essence a long room stuffed with period objects and photos relating to the colourful history of the Peace Hotel, is an…

3. Bund Sightseeing Tunnel

0.05 MILES

A 647m voyage with entertainment including budget effects, garish lighting and dreadful props, the Bund Sightseeing Tunnel is a transport mode guaranteed…

4. Jardine Matheson

0.06 MILES

Standing at No 27 on the Bund is the former headquarters of early opium traders Jardine Matheson, which went on to become one of the most powerful trading…

5. Glen Line Steamship Co.

0.09 MILES

This elegant 1922 neoclassical building served as the office of a British shipping company before being occupied by the Japanese during WWII and serving…

6. North China Daily News Building

0.09 MILES

The former building of Shanghai-based English newspaper North China Daily, this 1921 neoclassical building is notable for its top-level Atlas art-nouveau…

7. Banque de l'Indochine Building

0.11 MILES

Built in 1914, this French Baroque–style building was originally the Banque de l'Indochine Building. Today it's a Chinese bank with a lavish lobby you can…

8. The Bund

0.12 MILES

Symbolic of concession-era Shanghai, the Bund was the city’s Wall Street, a place of feverish trading and fortunes made and lost. Originally a towpath for…

View more attractions

placement: superzone
path: Destinations/POIs/superzone
possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [1, 1],

targeting:

{
  "url": "china/shanghai/the-bund/attractions/bank-of-china-building/a/poi-sig/1085422/1323851",
  "position": "superzone"
}