Bankenviertel
Bankenviertel is the name of the central business district in Frankfurt, Germany where many banks, insurance companies, law firms, and other financial institutions are located. It is the most important German financial hub, if not one of the largest in Europe along with La Défense in the Paris aire urbaine and London's City and Canary Wharf.
Having no official or strict borders, it is commonly defined as the western part of the Innenstadt, the southern part of the Westend and the eastern part of the Bahnhofsviertel. Its most central square is the Opernplatz.
Location
The Bankenviertel is not an official city district and has no official or strictly defined borders. It stretches across three city districts: the western part of the Innenstadt, the southern part of the Westend and the eastern part of the Bahnhofsviertel. Many of the largest banks in Germany, e.g. Deutsche Bank, DZ Bank, Commerzbank and Helaba, have their corporate headquarters here, as well as many representation offices of foreign banks. It is also the place where most of List of [tallest buildings in Frankfurt|Frankfurts high-rises and skyscrapers] are located, which gave it also the nicknames Bankfurt and Mainhattan.The heart of the Bankenviertel is located on both sides of the Taunus- and Gallusanlage, an inner-city parkway, and the surrounding streets, and the central square of the Bankenviertel is the Opernplatz. Furthermore, the area on both sides of the Mainzer Landstraße from Taunusanlage to Platz der Republik and the Bockenheimer Landstraße, beginning at the Opernplatz, are part of the area. The Bankenviertel also includes the areas near the Opernplatz on its eastern side, notably the Frankfurt Stock Exchange east of the Opernplatz, as well as a number of banks in its immediate vicinity.