JPMorgan Chase to build Investment Bank headquarters at World Trade Center complex in Lower Manhattan

Reflecting environmental commitment, Company to seek LEED-Platinum status for new WTC building and for renovation of world headquarters

New York - Continuing its centuries-long commitment to Lower Manhattan and New York City, JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: JPM) announced today it will build a new 1.3-million-square-foot global investment banking headquarters at Site Five in the World Trade Center complex. The firm will invest approximately $2 billion in the project.

The new facility will house about 7,000 JPMorgan Investment Bank employees while providing for future business growth. The approximately 40-story building will include six world-class trading floors, each up to 60,000 square feet, and will employ state-of-the-art technology and safety features. The company also intends to achieve Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum certification for the new project, reflecting its commitment to environmentally responsible projects.

“JPMorgan Chase is proud of our deep roots in New York City and New York State, and we’re pleased to be announcing a project today that will be critical to our firm’s long-term future,” said Jamie Dimon, Chief Executive Officer. “We are also proud to be taking a leadership role in supporting Lower Manhattan and helping to revitalize the World Trade Center area.” David Rockefeller, former Chairman of Chase Manhattan Bank, said, “This is a prime example of history repeating itself, and I couldn’t be more pleased. The old Chase Manhattan Bank led the revival of Wall Street and Lower Manhattan in the 1950s, when we decided to build our world headquarters on Pine and William Streets. As a strong supporter of the original World Trade Center and a former Chairman and CEO of the bank which we now know as JPMorgan Chase, I am delighted that this great institution will continue to play an important ongoing role in helping to rebuild Lower Manhattan as the financial capital of the world.”

“As a leading global investment bank, we must provide outstanding facilities and top-notch technology to support our bankers’ efforts to innovate, grow and to serve clients,” said Steve Black, co-CEO of JPMorgan’s Investment Bank, adding, “Just as we recently announced plans for a new state-of-the-art Investment Bank European headquarters in London, we are committed to making our global Investment Bank headquarters in Lower Manhattan the best facility of its kind.” Frank Bisignano, Chief Administrative Officer and a member of JPMorgan Chase’s Operating Committee, added, “In putting together this important new project, we will improve the quality of our space, increase our flexibility, and bring together our investment bankers in a cost-effective, environmentally friendly facility. From a financial and business standpoint, this is a compelling transaction for our company, our shareholders, New York City and New York State.”

Commenting on the firm’s intention to build a LEED-Platinum certified building Downtown and to achieve LEED-Platinum status for its Midtown New York world headquarters renovation, Richard Fedrizzi, President, CEO, and Founding Chairman of U.S. Green Building Council, which developed the LEED rating system, said: “JPMorgan Chase is demonstrating extraordinary global leadership by connecting their values to their most visible asset - their buildings - and they’re giving their customers financial tools to do the same.” He added, “Together with their commitment to arrange $1 billion in financing for energy retrofits of existing buildings through the Clinton Climate Initiative, JPMorgan Chase’s actions demonstrate that we can act today to solve 38% of the climate change equation - our buildings.”

JPMorgan Chase traces its roots in Lower Manhattan back more than 200 years to 1799. The company and its predecessor firms played a key role in the development and growth of the U.S. and global economies. Through philanthropic and commercial leadership, the Rockefeller and Morgan families -- leaders of the firm’s predecessor companies -- were instrumental in developing Lower Manhattan into a vibrant, innovative business and cultural center and in transforming the Wall Street business community into a major force in global financial services. JPMorgan Chase’s workforce of more than 25,000 in New York State makes it one of the state’s largest private employers. With more than 600 bank branches and almost 2,000 ATMs, it also has the largest consumer banking presence in the state and is a leader in corporate philanthropy in the region.

Demolition work at the World Trade Center Site Five location is expected to be completed by early next year, with the new JPMorgan building expected to open by early 2012. Terms of the agreement have not been disclosed.

In addition to announcing its new Investment Bank headquarters planned for Lower Manhattan, JPMorgan Chase also confirmed plans today to fully renovate its world headquarters building at 270 Park Avenue in Midtown Manhattan. The renovation of the 1.2-million-square-foot facility will take place over the next few years, and the firm also intends to achieve LEED-Platinum status for the building, which will make it the largest LEED-Platinum certified conversion of an existing commercial building in the world.

Commenting on JPMorgan Chase’s agreement to build in Lower Manhattan, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said: “After 9/11, people were saying that New York was on its knees, but with record low unemployment, lower taxes, lower crime rates, better schools and a better quality of life, there’s no doubt that New York is a place where major companies want to locate and do business. The resurgence of Lower Manhattan has made it a particularly attractive area and today’s announcement sends a message to the world that New York and Lower Manhattan have come back stronger than ever.”

“The rebuilding of the World Trade Center site is critical for New York to maintain its position as the world’s financial capital,” Governor Eliot Spitzer said. “JPMorgan Chase’s investment highlights the vigor of the resurgence that we’re now witnessing in Lower Manhattan. This represents another aggressive step as we move forward with the creation of a complex that befits the memory of 9/11.”