American Express Breaks Ground on New Tower at World Trade Center
Twenty-five years after the events of 9/11 left Lower Manhattan irreversibly changed, American Express (Amex) broke ground for the a new tower at 2 World Trade Center, which will become the financial giant’s new global headquarters.
| 10 Jul 2026 | 04:08
An artist renendition of the new American Express Tower, which is slated to rise to an estimated height of 1,250 feet and house 55 floors with the financial giant as the primary occupant. (
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A mock-up of the new American Express Tower (center) side-by-side with the Freedom Tower, in the World Trade Center complex. (
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Lisa Silverstein of Silverstein Partners and NYC officials including NYS Senator Brian Kavanagh, Assembly member Grace Lee, City Council speaker Julie Menin, Mayor Zohran Mamdani, comptroller Mark Levine and Manhattan borough president Brad Hoylman-Sigal were present July 9 at the groundbreaking of the new American Express Tower at 2 World Trade Center. (
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The American Express Executive Committee breaks ground at 2 World Trade Center for the financial company’s new building, set to take five years to complete. (
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Officials broke ground for the final building in the World Trade Center complex with a new tower that will become the global headqaurters of financial giant American Express.
The tower at 2 World Trade Center, which Crain’s New York Business said will cost an estimated $4 billion to build, replaces the original that was destroyed in the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001.
The new American Express Tower is slated to finish construction in 2031.
“On this ground, great deals had been agreed, inventions had been made, economic progress had been won,” Mayor Zohran Mamdani said at the tower’s breaking ground ceremony on July 9. “For a moment, it seemed in the aftermath of that horrific attack that perhaps greatness would only be a memory. But over the months and years that followed, greatness returned. It returned in the first responders who sacrificed so much on behalf of their fellow New Yorkers. It returned to those who cleared the pile and laid new foundations. It returned in the first office workers who came back to work, and it returns today as we break ground on a new building that will rise 1,226 feet into the sky.”
Amex currently occupies 200 Vesey St. in FiDi, near its future headquarters, where it has been located since 1986. Amex’s next building will be set across from 1 World Trade Center, also known as the Freedom Tower, which at 1,776 feet is the tallest building in the US.
The new tower will be located at 200 Greenwich St, owned and leased out by NY Port Authority, and will rise to an estimated 1,250 feet, spanning nearly two million square feet and holding 55 floors.
Lisa Silverstein, CEO of Silverstein Properties, the developer of the new Amex tower, said the building is another step in preserving the legacy of the World Trade Center.
“This is an important milestone for our city, American Express, and Silverstein Properties,” Silverstein said. “But it also symbolizes triumph, and what can be accomplished in this country following what happened here nearly 25 years ago.”
The project is being designed by Foster + Partners, a British architecture firm. In addition to its geographical and symbolic significance, the new tower aims to show the city’s efforts to remain a global business hub. The project is expected to create over 3,200 construction-related jobs and contribute roughly $5.9 billion to the city’s economy.
“Today’s groundbreaking at 2 World Trade Center is further proof that New York City remains a top destination for businesses to call home,” Julie Menin, NYC Council Speaker, wrote on X.
Denise Pickett, president of American Express’ Enterprise Shared Services, said the project reflects the company’s connection to the city.
“For American Express, this project is far more than a new headquarters,” Pickett said. “It is a reaffirmation of our belief in this city, our commitment to our colleagues, and our enduring connection to the community we have proudly called home for nearly two centuries. Since our founding in 1850, New York has shaped who we are, and in turn, we have sought to contribute to its growth, vitality, and success.”