HSBC Building (Penang)

File:KITLV - 80026 - Kleingrothe, C.J. - Medan - Beach Street in Penang - circa 1910.tif style and bedecked with a domed tower, {{Circa|1910}}.]]

File:Side view of HSBC Building in George Town, Penang.jpg of the HSBC Building in 2024.]]

HSBC established its presence in Malaysia in 1884 with the opening of its first branch in George Town.{{Cite news |last=Siddiq |first=Omar |date=12 Aug 2024 |title=Sowing seeds over the last 140 years to foster Penang’s progression |url=https://theedgemalaysia.com/content/advertise/sowing-seeds-over-the-last-140-years-to-foster-penang_s-progression |access-date=9 Oct 2024 |work=The Edge}} The branch was initially housed within the Logan Building at Beach Street.{{Cite book |last=Langdon |first=Marcus |title=A Guide to George Town's Historic Commercial and Civic Precincts |publisher=George Town World Heritage Incorporated |year=2014 |location=George Town|page=30}}

The present-day HSBC Building occupies the site that was previously home to a telegraph office. As banks began to establish offices around the northern end of Beach Street, HSBC acquired the site and commissioned a three-storey building with a domed tower. The building was designed by architects and civil engineers Wilson & Neubronner in Neoclassical style, with its domed tower bearing resemblance to that of the adjacent Bank of China Building. Construction was completed at a cost of $250,000 (Straits dollar) and HSBC moved into the premises in 1906.{{Cite book |last=Hockton |first=Keith |title=Penang: An Inside Guide to Its Historic Homes, Buildings, Monuments and Parks. |publisher=MPH Group |year=2012 |isbn=978-967-415-303-8}} The building, standing at a height of {{Convert|120|ft|abbr=on}}, was considered the tallest in George Town until the completion of the nearby railway station, and held the distinction of being the first in Penang to be equipped with electric lifts.

The original HSBC building was destroyed by Allied bombardment during World War II. Following the war, in 1948, HSBC made the decision to reconstruct the building while temporarily operating its Penang branch from the India House. By 1949, the 200 piles required to support the new foundations had been driven. The new building cost $1.5 million (Malayan dollar) and was inaugurated by British high commissioner Henry Gurney in 1951. The first building in George Town to be completed after the war, it was also the tallest in the city, until the completion of the adjacent Tuanku Syed Putra Building in 1962.{{Cite news |date=16 Mar 1951 |title=Penang's Tallest Building Ready Soon |url=https://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/newspapers/digitised/article/singstandard19510316-1.2.51 |access-date=15 Oct 2024 |work=Singapore Standard |page=3 |via=National Library Board}}{{Cite news |last=Gunn |first=Chit Thye |date=30 Aug 1962 |title=Penang is expanding—skywards: Now a multi-storeys trend |url=https://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/newspapers/digitised/article/straitstimes19620830-1.2.94 |access-date=15 Oct 2024 |work=The Straits Times |page=13 |via=National Library Board}}{{clear}}

The building was designed in Art Deco style, featuring elements commonly found in bank offices in Shanghai. The lower two levels are rusticated while the four upper floors incorporate a different façade.

• Bank of China Building
• Foo Tye Sin Mansion
• OCBC Building
• Standard Chartered Bank building

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{{Malaysian colonial architecture}}

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Category:Buildings and structures in George Town, Penang

Category:1951 establishments in Malaya

Category:Office buildings completed in 1951

Category:Art Deco architecture

Category:HSBC buildings and structures

Category:Office buildings in Penang