Stowmarket bank of Santander to close as part of slashing of branch network
The bank blamed the closures on “changes in how customers are choosing to carry out their banking”.
It said branch transactions have fallen 23% in the last three years, while digital transactions have soared 99%.
The bank said its remaining network of 614 branches will be made up of larger branches offering improved community facilities and smaller branches using the latest technology to offer more convenience.
About 60 bank branches are closing every month according to the consumer group Which? It found that 2,868 branches will have closed between 2015 and the end of 2018, and called the trend “alarming.”
The exodus of the banks mean that some Suffolk towns are now being left with no bank at all – including Aldeburgh, which is losing its last bank, a branch of Barclays, in March.
Locals accuse the banks of abandoning them, but the banks say their branches are being under used as more and more people bank online.