More than one in three of all the banks across the UK have closed over the last four years. That is over 3,300 branches, or 34 percent of the national network, while by contrast, America’s branch network has seen little of this radical change.
This was disclosed in a publication by Learn Bonds, a UK business news publication firm, and forwarded to The Herald on February 3, 2020.
According to the report, Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), which owns NatWest, is the worst offender in the UK, cutting 52 percent, or 797 of its outlets in just two years, and shutting 74 per cent of its network over four years, according to data provided by consumer group Which?
The march of digital banks such as Monzo, Revolut and Starling combined with consumer’s increasing use of online services has led to a shift in the way Britons use their banks.
The average bank branch meanwhile received 104 visits in 2017, a 26 per cent fall compared to five years ago, said banking lobby group UK Finance.
Also, 74 per cent of adults used online banking last year, while the number of contactless card payments jumped 97 per cent to 5.6 billion in 2017, compared to the year before.
By contrast, in the US, where among other elements, digital banking services are less advanced than Europe, branch decline has been shallow.
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America’s largest retail banks – such as Wells Fargo, Capital One, Bank of America – closed 4 percent of their outlets closing over the past year, according to Retail Banker International.
In the US, among retailers and banks, there has been a “reluctance to adopt new technology because it requires upgrades or replacements”, said consultant Capgemini’s World Payments Report 2019.
Read the full story here: One in three UK bank branches close, US network rides digital onslaught