The federal agency, Design Canada, closed in 1985, followed by the University of Toronto's (soon rescinded) announcement in 1986 that its school of architecture was to be shut down.

[6][5] The Bay Street property was sold in 1986 to Cadillac Fairview and the Toronto Dominion Bank but O&Y required that the design centre idea would be kept.

[9] In 2019, the DX gave Razor Suleman the position of chief executive officer (CEO), effective immediately.

[10] Also in 2019, the Design Exchange became the home of Elevate, a Canadian not-for-profit that operates an annual tech festival.

The renovated space was redesigned to pay tribute to the building's architecture while providing a contemporary refresh.