Multinational consultancy giant Deloitte is planning a move from its Shenton Way premises to an Orchard Road location after its current lease at OUE Downtown expires at the end of 2026, The Business Times has learnt.

Deloitte is believed to have secured a permanent spot at Orchard Central, where it will take up “several floors” at the upper levels of the 12-storey building owned by Far East Organization.

In a social media post on Friday (Jul 10), Deloitte said the move will take place in 2027.

“We are taking some steps over the next 15 months to prepare ourselves for a smooth transition over to a unique space where we can work, collaborate, connect and grow – all in one location,” it added.

As an interim measure in September, Deloitte will relocate staff to JustCo Place on Orchard Road.

It has committed to take up 64,000 square feet (sq ft) of new co-working space in a new co-working and co-living hub run by JustCo : JCO +5.17% at the former OG Orchard Point building.

Deloitte currently occupies 150,000 sq ft across 11 floors at OUE Downtown in Shenton Way. BT understands that the firm may continue to hold some space there while planning to move to its new premises at Orchard Central.

The move, which is under discussion, would showcase a major shift for a brand-name multinational company from a core Central Business District (CBD) location into Singapore’s prime retail strip.

It would involve a change of use for the mall which requires approval from the Urban Redevelopment Authority to convert retail space into office use. It is believed that approval has been secured.

Orchard Central, completed in 2009 on the site of a huge former car park, stands just across the road from the new JustCo Place and The Centrepoint. It is directly connected to Somerset MRT station, and also linked by connected walkways to neighbouring Orchard Gateway and 313@somerset.

The property is home to several popular retailers such as Melbourne chain Yo-Chi, which still sees long snaking queues today for its frozen yogurt after opening in a ground floor space at the mall last year.

Key tenants include fashion retailer Uniqlo and Japanese supermarket chain Don Don Donki.

BT understands that Deloitte is looking to take up the upper floors of Orchard Central, and tenants who may be affected have been informed and will be “gently transitioned”.

Real estate market watchers suggested that Deloitte is eyeing a fresh and different concept for its Singapore office base.

In 2023, incoming South-east Asia chief executive Eugene Ho said that Deloitte would add around 3,000 new hires in Singapore within five years, as part of growth plans across the region.

A Deloitte spokesperson told BT that “a portion” of its employees will relocate to JustCo Place from OUE Downtown, which it has occupied since 2002, as part of its “ongoing workplace growth strategy”. 

“This move... reflects our continued investment in creating workplace experiences that support how our people work, collaborate and serve clients,” the spokesperson said.

“A key thrust of our strategy is to make our workplace future-proof and fit for purpose – not only for the way we work today, but also for how we want to work tomorrow.”

Deloitte declined to elaborate on how many employees will relocate to JustCo Place, as well as future occupancy plans at this stage. Far East Organization declined to comment.

In Q1, Deloitte was the top commercial tenant of OUE Real Estate Investment Trust : TS0U 0% (Reit), accounting for 6.8 per cent of gross rental income, excluding turnover rent. Its 150,000 sq ft lease at OUE Downtown expires at the end of 2026. 

Phillips Securities analyst Hashim Osman said in a May report that Deloitte’s move could give the Reit a “key” opportunity, given that its existing lease is estimated to be below S$8 per sq ft (psf) a month. 

Rents of Grade A offices in the CBD have been on the rise, with limited supply and firm demand keeping the market tight. In Q2, data from CBRE showed that rents for core CBD offices rose for the sixth straight quarter to S$12.50 psf per month.

With few new completions till 2027, analysts said the structural undersupply supporting the market’s current rental cycle will not be a short-term phenomenon.

Newport Tower will be the only non-strata development slated for completion next year, with the next wave of supply – The Skywaters, The Clifford, One Comcentre and Union Square Central – expected in 2028.

Market watchers have pointed out that adding more office and residential developments in Orchard Road could support the government’s push to rejuvenate the precinct. This would create baseline demand for food and beverage, services and convenience retail.

Currently, the precinct has just 3.3 million sq ft of office stock, a fraction of the roughly 32 million Grade A office space in the CBD.

It would also make sense for companies, since Orchard Road is “more likely to be accepted by multinational companies over regional centres”, said Alan Cheong, executive director of research and consultancy at Savills Singapore.

OUE Reit’s manager would not comment on Deloitte’s departure ahead of its first-half results announcement on Jul 22. 

Orchard Central is a 99-year leasehold commercial property on an 8,953 square metre (sq m) parcel, with gross floor area of 38,262.87 sq m and net lettable area of 24,054 sq m.

Completed in 2009, the development features 12 floors of retail and dining and two basement levels.