49 Chambers was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982, and both the exterior and the first floor interior were designated New York City landmarks in 1985.

[5] The surrounding area contains evidence of the interment of individuals, mostly of African descent, and some of these corpses may remain under the Emigrant Savings Bank Building site.

[8][9] It was built by contractor Charles T. Wills Inc.[3][10] The 5,300 short tons (4,700 long tons; 4,800 t) of steel was supplied by Post and McCord; the foundations were made by the O'Rourke Engineering and Construction Company; and the brick was supplied by the Harbison Walker Refractories Company.

[16][b] At the time the Emigrant Savings Bank Building was constructed, skyscraper developers in New York City were generally looking for layouts that could maximize naturally-lit floor space.

Before the Emigrant Savings Bank Building's completion, developers frequently bought surrounding low-rise buildings to preserve their structures' views; alternatively, architects would design the upper floors to be smaller than the lower floors to compensate for large rooftop cornices.

On the Chambers Street elevation, at the first and second floors, rusticated granite piers and engaged columns subdivide the facade into nine bays.

The secondary entrances on both ends contain a simpler granite surround, with the street address above the door.

[21][22] The upper floors contain the H-shaped plan and are designed to resemble a pair of three-bay-wide towers on both the Chambers and Reade Street sides.

The following ten floors, between the fourth and the thirteenth stories, consist of square-headed, copper-framed windows set back slightly between limestone piers.

Heavy pediments atop the ends of both towers contain bee motifs evocative of the Barberini mercantile family, as well as large stone carvings of eagles and urns.

[22][27] It is aligned on a largely north–south axis; anterooms, originally used as officers' quarters, extend west and east from the southern end of the banking room.

[28] The interior of the banking hall is made of Arena Pola limestone blocks brought from Istria.

[10] Since conversion, the banking hall has contained a three-bedroom "model apartment" as well as a separate event space.

[12] The banking hall is accessed from the central doorway on Chambers Street, which leads to a foyer with marble geometric-patterned floors.

The northern end of the banking room contains a marble staircase descending to the central doorway on Reade Street.

[22][29] Two mezzanines, enclosed within frosted glass and ornamental bronze, run atop the tellers' cages.

[29] The ceiling contains large oval skylights made of stained glass, which depict allegorical figures in various industries.

[22][10][30] On either side of the banking hall, there are smaller plain-vaulted ceiling sections with rosettes and overhanging chandeliers.

[8] The bank survived the Panic of 1873 and grew rapidly in the subsequent decade, purchasing an adjacent building at 49 Chambers Street in 1882.

[32][33] The second bank building, opened in April 1887, was described as being fireproof, with brick floors, iron structural beams, fire-clay partitions, and marble ceilings and walls.

[40] By 1908, the city decided to erect the Municipal Building one block east of the Emigrant Bank site.

[55] The Municipal Service Administration requested $3.25 million in 1974 to renovate the Emigrant Savings Bank Building.

[52] By 1978, the New York City Department of Buildings planned to renovate the main banking hall, removing much decorative detail in the process.

Paul Goldberger, architecture writer for The New York Times, criticized the plans, calling the banking hall "irreplaceable" and "the one real asset that this near-bankrupt city has".

[59] After the September 11 attacks in 2001, an aid center was opened in the Emigrant Savings Bank Building in 2002, moving from Pier 94 on the Hudson River.

[61][62] The New York City government sold the buildings in an attempt to reduce the amount of office space that it owned.

[15] Woods Bagot was hired to renovate the space, as well as to restore decorative elements and other historic motifs in the building.

[13][67] However, because of a lack of demand for the condominiums, Chetrit offered to give buyers' agents half of their commission upon the signing of a contract.

[71] Hall des Lumières's opening was postponed[72][73] to September 14, 2022, when the space hosted a Gustav Klimt art installation.