Bank of Ceylon Merchant Tower

Commissioned by The Bank of Ceylon Property Development Limited, the brief for the BoC Merchant Tower called for a twenty-two storeyed high-rise office development to house the Colpetty Super Grade Branch, Visa Card Centre, Travel Centre and other subsidiary companies of the Bank of Ceylon. The conceptual approach to the design was to embody the Bank’s identity as the ‘Bankers to the Nation’. Featuring twenty-two storeys and two basement levels, the solid facade of the westward tower expresses the strength and infallibility of the bank while the staggered glazed curtain wall reflects the bank’s warm, and friendly customer-centric image. The solid façade, clad in coloured aluminum panels, serves as a backdrop for the glazed curtain wall. The BoC Merchant Tower set a precedent in Sri Lanka by being the first high-rise building to incorporate an aluminium cladded exterior façade and by installing car elevators to service its multi-level parking floors. In recognition of its design excellence, the tower received the Sri Lanka Institute of Architects Design Award in the year 2000 under the Banks category.