The groundbreaking ceremony of the building took place in Beijing on 19 September 2011, and the constructors expected to finish the project within five years.

CITIC Tower is Northern China's third-tallest building after Goldin Finance 117 and Chow Tai Fook Binhai Center in Tianjin.

The tower is likely to remain the tallest building in Beijing for the foreseeable future, as in 2018 authorities capped new projects in the central business district to a height of no more than 180 m (590 ft) in a bid to reduce congestion.

[8] In April 2018, Hong Kong newspaper Ming Pao reported that China Zun's top three floors, Levels 106–107 and an observatory on level 108, was to be expropriated by the national-security apparatus, since the entire Zhongnanhai complex, the headquarters of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party and the State Council of the People's Republic of China, could be seen from the top of the skyscraper with the naked eye on a clear day.

[dubious – discuss] The building was ordered to be rectified for "fire safety issues" by the authorities, but the CITIC Group was unable to reveal the specific reason for rectification.