NICOLA Sturgeon has hailed the opening of the new Barclays building in Glasgow as "a landmark moment" for the city.

The 500,000sq ft Barclays campus on the south banks of the River Clyde represents a £330 million capital investment by the global banking group.

Despite the difficulties caused by the pandemic, the Tradeston campus has opened only slightly behind schedule and comfortably within the original goal of housing staff by the end of this year. 

The bank has grown its workforce in Glasgow by more than 90% in the past four years and is on track to have around 5000 employees on campus by 2023.

The campus will be home to the bank’s technology, operations and functions teams, which provide support to its consumer, corporate and investment banking activities. 

READ MORE: Leading Scottish firms join forces to speed up journey to net zero

Barclays chief executive Jes Staley said: “We wanted to create something transformative that would have a lasting impact on Glasgow, its people and the local economy.

“I am proud of the opportunities we have created – not just through jobs, but also through our supply chain and community initiatives. 

“The UK is a world leader in financial services and Glasgow plays an important part. With this investment we are increasing the strategic importance of the city to our future.” 

The company said it has focused on the use of local contractors where possible during development of the site, with some suppliers scaling up their business because of their work on the campus. Approximately 80 Scottish firms were involved in the project, roughly two-thirds of which were from Glasgow. 

Opening the new building, the First Minister said: “The opening of Barclays’ Glasgow campus - one of the biggest inward investments to have ever come to Scotland - represents a landmark moment for our country’s thriving financial services industry.

“It is a real statement of confidence in the talent and skills of our people and reinforces Scotland’s status as a global finance and technology hub.”