A Guide to Canary Wharf

Canary Wharf is the well-renowned business district within London, situated in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.

In 2007, the number of workers in Canary Wharf was estimated to be over 90,000, with a quarter living in one of the five adjacent boroughs. This is expected to rocket over the next decade, with the number of people working in Canary Wharf expected to exceed 100,000 by 2009 and even over 200,000 by 2025.

Canary Wharf is host to many well-known multinationals including financial institutions and banks (HSBC, Citigroup, Morgan Stanley), media firms (Reuters, Daily Mirror) and technology companies (Infosys). However, Canary Wharf also is host to a wide range of small to medium size companies, ranging from telecommunications, IT and marketing agencies.

Canary Wharf is well-connected in terms of transport links, with easy access to the London underground, buses and the Docklands Light Railway (DLR). Canary Wharf can even be accessed by boat, with Canary Wharf Pier offering services to the City of London and Embankment, and access to nearby residential areas such as Rotherhithe and Surrey Quays.

Up until the 1970s, Canary Wharf was one of the busiest docks not only in the UK and Europe, but in the whole world. The name actually originates from the sea trade with the Canary Islands decades ago and wharf originally was an acronym for "WareHouse At the River Front".

Canary Wharf is host to the three tallest buildings in the UK: 1 Canada Square, sometimes referred to as Canary Wharf Tower (244m), Citigroup Centre (200m) and 8 Canada Square (also at 200m). Canary Wharf is not only host to businesses and office buildings, with Jubilee Place opening in 2004, an estimated half a million people each week shop at Canary Wharf.