Albert Einstein and André Malraux stayed at Astor House at the time of its greatest splendour. This historic palace, the first of its kind in Shanghai, was built in 1846 in neo-Baroque style and modified in 1907 in line with the traditional aspects of English classicism. Despite having lost its original magnificence, the Astor House is still open as a hotel, with guestrooms which are very much aristocratic in size. The hotel also welcomes visitors in search of the legendary Bund of bygone days. It was in the hotel ballroom that the Shanghai Stock Exchange was launched in 1990.