The Dallas City Council has approved an $18.5 million incentive package to attract financial giant Morgan Stanley to establish a major operational hub in North Texas, a project that could bring thousands of jobs and a new $1.3 billion office tower to Uptown Dallas.
The council voted unanimously on Wednesday to authorize the incentives as Dallas competes with Alpharetta, Georgia, for the investment.
If selected, Morgan Stanley would occupy temporary office space in downtown Dallas before moving into a newly constructed 708,000-square-foot office tower at 2401 McKinney Avenue. The project would place the company alongside other major financial institutions expanding their North Texas presence, including Goldman Sachs and Bank of America.
“Morgan Stanley’s engagement with Dallas speaks to the strength of our financial services ecosystem, and I look forward to welcoming the firm to Y’all Street,” Dallas Mayor Eric L. Johnson said in a statement he posted on X.
“Morgan Stanley’s engagement with Dallas speaks to the strength of our financial services ecosystem, and I look forward to welcoming the firm to Y’all Street. We have worked hard to make Dallas America’s most pro-business city,” said Big D Mayor Eric Johnson.…
— Mayor Eric L. Johnson (@Johnson4Dallas) June 24, 2026
$1.3 Billion Investment Planned
According to city documents, developer Trammell Crow Company would invest approximately $650 million to construct the office tower. Morgan Stanley would invest more than $684 million in the project by 2031, bringing the total estimated investment to roughly $1.3 billion.
The firm also plans to spend nearly $97 million on temporary office space at Fountain Place in downtown Dallas while the Uptown tower is under construction.
Construction on the permanent office campus is expected to begin in 2026, with completion targeted for 2031.
Thousands Of Jobs Expected
The proposed project is expected to create a significant employment center in Dallas.
City records indicate Morgan Stanley could employ approximately 1,500 workers at the site by 2031. That number is projected to increase to 3,800 employees by the end of 2035, with the potential to reach 4,800 jobs by 2039.
The positions would span areas including wealth management, compliance, risk management, legal services, technology, and operations.
Mayor Johnson said the expansion could bring more than $780 million in capital investment and thousands of high-paying jobs to the City.
“Now, Morgan Stanley is considering Dallas for a new, large-scale U.S. operational hub that would bring with it over $780 million in capital investment and create up to 4,800 new, high-paying jobs,” Johnson said, WFAA reported.
Growth Of “Y’all Street”
The potential move would further strengthen Dallas’ growing reputation as a financial services center, often referred to as “Y’all Street.”
Texas has become increasingly attractive to financial firms because of its business-friendly environment, lack of a state income tax, and expanding financial infrastructure.
Dallas is already home to major corporations, including Texas Instruments, Southwest Airlines, CBRE Group, Energy Transfer, and Tenet Healthcare.
The region’s financial sector has expanded rapidly in recent years, with the creation of the Texas Stock Exchange, Nasdaq Texas, and NYSE Texas. JPMorgan Chase now employs more people in Texas than in New York.
Johnson has made the expansion of the financial sector a key priority and led a delegation of business and civic leaders to New York earlier this year to promote Dallas as an investment destination.
“Y’all Street is more than a slogan,” Johnson said, per WFAA. “My Administration is intent on growing Dallas’s financial services sector in order to power a thriving economy that benefits all Dallas residents. I am grateful to my colleagues on the Dallas City Council for supporting that vision.”
If Morgan Stanley ultimately selects Dallas, the project would represent one of the largest corporate investments in the City’s recent history and further cement North Texas as a major financial hub.
