[2] The proposal was immediately opposed as it would entail demolition of the site's 18th-century Commercial Buildings constructed in 1799 and which for a period housed the Irish Stock Exchange.

Until 1783, it was also the site of Dublin's General Post Office until this moved to a dedicated building on the other side of College Green.

It was the chief planning officer, Charles Aliaga-Kelly, who noticed the discrepancy in height in August 1973 and began to investigate.

The greatest concern among the objectors was the dangerous precedent it could set if architects and builders could construct buildings over 25% taller than the approved plans with no recourse.

Architect and activist, Duncan Stewart commented that the building would "stand forever as a monument in Dublin to show that you could overpower authority if you had money.

[3] The project, which was carried out by Sisk Group,[8] was completed in 1978,[2] and included a replica of the Commercial Buildings in a different location on the site.

[18] As of November 2022, a number of office and retail companies had reportedly taken up tenancies in the "recently opened Central Plaza".

[15] The building is based around two central concrete cores, with floorspace suspended around them by twelve sets of external supports.

[7] The rooftop supports were originally exposed on the roof, giving the building an even more distinctive profile, but were later contained in copper cladding due to issues with rainwater.

It forms part of the legacy of the late architect Sam Stephenson who also designed the iconic Civic Offices.

[23][24] The Central Bank's lobby contained Abstract Beaded Pattern, a large artwork by Patrick Scott.