The building registration as Historic Place: Category 1. It was built for Percy Herman, the managing director of Warner's Hotel, and Walter Cresswell, a local solicitor. It became known as the Royal Exchange Building after the Royal Exchange Assurance Company became one of its principal tenants. The Royal Exchange Building, built in 1905, was designed by the Luttrell brothers, Alfred and Sidney.

n 1930 the building was altered by J. S. Guthrie (1883-1946), a local architect, and reopened as the Regent Theatre. Guthrie retained the outer shell of the Royal Exchange Building and designed the interior, according to a contemporary newspaper article, to capture 'the grandeur and charm of Old Spain'. To achieve a luxurious effect, Guthrie made extensive use of gilt, marble and mirrors throughout the interior. At the time the Regent Theatre opened it had the largest screen in Australasia and the latest movie projectors. Unfortunately the interior was destroyed by fire in 1979 but the building itself reopened two years later as a twin cinema complex.

The Regent Theatre Building makes a major contribution to the townscape of Cathedral Square. It was the first major Edwardian building erected in the square and makes an interesting contrast to the neighbouring Victorian and modern buildings there. It was the last of six cinemas to be developed around Cathedral Square, and at the time it opened it was considered to be the grandest theatre in the city. Before that, as the Royal Exchange Building, it was an important commercial building in the centre of Christchurch.

The 6.3 magnitude Earthquake, Thursday, March 03, 2011 has caused substantial damgae to the building.