BFF Banking Group: Laying of the Foundation Stone of “Casa BFF”, the Group’s New Headquarters in Milan
A year on from the announcement, work is now under way on the
construction of the building. The opening is planned to take place by
December 2024, on the eve of the bank’s 40th anniversary.
The new HQ is located on Viale Scarampo, in Milan’s Portello district, and will be an integral part of the project that aims to regenerate this quarter of the city.
Milan, 7 June 2023 – Today in Milan the ceremony was held for the laying of the foundation stone of what will become “Casa BFF”, the new headquarters of BFF Banking Group – the largest speciality finance provider in Italy, and a leading player in Europe for the management and non-recourse factoring of trade receivables owed to suppliers by public-sector organizations. In Italy, BFF also provides securities services and corporate payment services.
Participating in the presentation of this next phase of the project were Salvatore Messina, Chairman of BFF Banking Group, CEO Massimiliano Belingheri, and Enrico Pazzali, President of Fondazione Fiera.
Salvatore Messina, Chairman of BFF Banking Group, stated: “Showcasing Casa BFF today, and laying the foundation stone, is a source of great pride for us, but it is also a sign of the commitment that BFF wishes to take on, investing in a project that is contributing to the regeneration and development of what is a time-honoured district within the city. We like to think of our new home as a meeting point, and one that is very much geared towards the mutual enhancement of the bank and the local area, offering the wider community such amenities as a city garden and an outdoor amphitheatre, as well as a museum, which will play host to the works of contemporary art currently on display in our offices in Milan and Rome, transforming them into assets to be shared with everyone”.
“Casa BFF”, which will benefit from LEED Platinum and WELL Gold certifications, is part of an ongoing project to overhaul the group’s facilities. This is a process that has already been completed for the Spanish offices in Madrid (2020), now housed in Castellana 81 (LEED Platinum), and for those in Łódź, Poland (2019), now located at the LEED Gold-certified Brama Miasta complex. Casa BFF in Milan was designed by architects Paolo Brescia and Tommaso Principi at OBR.
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BFF Banking Group
BFF Banking Group is the largest speciality finance provider in Italy and a leading player in Europe for the management and non-recourse factoring of trade receivables owed to suppliers by public-sector organizations; BFF also provides securities services and corporate payment services. The group operates in Italy, Croatia, the Czech Republic, France, Greece, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia and Spain. BFF is listed on the Italian Stock Exchange. In 2022 it reported a consolidated Adjusted Net Income of €146 million, with a 17.0% Group CET1 ratio at the end of March 2023. www.bff.com
Casa BFF
“Casa BFF” is the new headquarters of BFF Group in Milan, but it also constitutes a more wide-ranging city project. Designed by OBR, Casa BFF aims to foster strong links with the local area, starting from the immediate context of Viale Scarampo, one of the main access routes into the city.
“Casa BFF” has been designed to bring back into the public domain what is a “super-urban” place of aggregation – the Agora – where people will enjoy getting together once again and, in the process, celebrating a renewed community ritual.
Set back from the street, the building will provide the backdrop for a new city square, overlooked by the atrium, the auditorium and the museum of Casa BFF.
The public open space of the Agora is defined by a 40-metre-high portico that holds aloft the building’s massive “energy roof”, delineating the “fifth facade” – a regular geometric shape on the roof that is a recognizable feature of the city when seen from above. This so-called “Flying Carpet” is both a passive and an active energy device: it affords shade, protecting against bad weather and direct sunlight, while also helping to meet the energy requirements of the building and the surrounding area. With its 2,300 m2 of photovoltaic panels, it generates 360 MWh/year, thereby embodying BFF’s commitment to sustainability and the environment.
The “Flying Carpet of Energy” also defines the pronaos, through which you access the building and which characterizes the large panoramic terrace, conceived as a shared space, from which to admire the city.
The interior space can easily be reconfigured and customized, adapting to the maximum number of possible layouts, complete with relaxation areas and hybrid indoor/outdoor informal spaces.
The architecture has been designed to create a desirable workplace that encourages a strong sense of belonging, where people are inspired to express their abilities and aspirations. Anticipating the future involves supporting exchange and interaction, and imagining a place in which ideas can circulate and cross-pollinate.
Project details
- Site area: 3,300 m2
- Surface area: 7,350 m2 (GFA)
- Maximum height: 40 m
- Certifications: LEED Platinum and WELL Gold
- Photovoltaic panels: 2,300 m2 (360 MWh/year).
Contacts
Alessia Barrera, Director of Communications and Industrial Relations
Press Office
HQ and International Press, Sofia Crosta, +39 340 3434 065
Iberia, Raquel Sánchez Bustamante, +34 659 16 80 79
Eastern-central Europe, Ewelina Kolad, +48 42 272 82 90
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