MORE High Street banks to close: NatWest will shut 21 branches while RBS will close 11 amid shift to mobile banking
- NatWest has announced it is closing 21 branches with staff having to relocate
- RBS will also shut 11 sites, including branch in Bishopsgate, central London
- Most customers ‘shifting to mobile and online banking’ as it is ‘faster and easier’
NatWest is to close 21 branches and RBS is to shut 11 amid a customer shift to mobile banking – as 12 jobs will be lost with the majority of staff having to relocate.
The banking giant has confirmed the sites, the majority of which are in England, will be closing, but are yet to provide a date as to when.
The list of branches due to close includes the Royal Bank of Scotland branch inside NatWest’s headquarters in Bishopsgate, central London.
Most staff will be relocated to other branches, but the bank has said 12 jobs will be put at risk.
A statement from NatWest said: ‘As with many industries, most of our customers are shifting to mobile and online banking, because it’s faster and easier for people to manage their financial lives.
NatWest is closing 21 of its branches with most of its staff having to relocate to a different branch, while 12 jobs will be at risk
Eleven Royal Bank of Scotland branches are also to close, including its site in Natwest’s headquarters in Bishopsgate, central London
The NatWest and RBS branches due to close
NatWest closures
Billericay, Essex
Borehamwood, Hertfordshire
Bulwell & Hucknall, Nottinghamshire
Chelsea, Greater London
Gillingham, Kent
Gosforth, Tyne and Wear
Headingley, West Yorkshire
Hull University, East Yorkshire
Leatherhead, Surrey
Leeds Victoria, West Yorkshire
Manchester Spinningfields Square, Greater Manchester
Marlow, Buckinghamshire
Nottingham City, Nottinghamshire
Piccadilly & New Bond Street, Greater London
Ruislip, north-west London
South Woodford, east London
Swanley, Kent
Tavistock Square, central London
Twickenham, west London
Windsor & Eton, Berkshire
Derby Crompton House, Derbyshire
Royal Bank of Scotland closures
Bishopsgate, City of London
Cardiff City, Wales
Chelmsford, Essex
Cheltenham, Gloucestershire
Harrow, north London
Leeds Park Row, West Yorkshire
Leicester Market Street, Leicestershire
London Child & Co
Nottingham City Office, Nottinghamshire
Southampton High Street, Hampshire
Wilmslow, Cheshire
‘We understand and recognise that digital solutions aren’t right for everyone or every situation, and that when we close branches we have to make sure that no-one is left behind.
‘We take our responsibility seriously to support the people who face challenges in moving online, so we are investing to provide them with support and alternatives that work for them.’
All of the branches are located in England aside from a single RBS site in Cardiff. Several in London will close along with Leeds and Manchester.
It comes as many of the UK’s bank chains have opted to close branches in recent years, fuelling concern that less technologically savvy customers may struggle to manage their bank accounts.
Research carried out by Which? last year showed that nearly half of Britain’s bank branches have either closed, or are closing imminently, since 2015.
A total of 4,735 branches had been earmarked for closure during the period, including 736 in 2021.
The closures have become such a common occurrence that, last week, Principality Building Society took the move to reassure staff and customers that it will be keeping all of its branches open until at least the end of 2025.
Last year, TSB said it will close 70 branches next year, also citing more customers making the switch to online banking as the reason.
The bank said 150 jobs will be affected by the closure of the stores between April and June 2022, but that all staff will be offered alternative roles at TSB.
The business said that it would have 220 branches left at the end of June 2022, compared to 290 today. It will still have the country’s seventh largest branch network.
More than 500 banks have closed since the beginning of the pandemic alone, with lockdown restrictions appearing to have accelerated a shift to online banking for many customers.
The banks say this had led to a drop in footfall and they need to prioritise investment in digital services.
MPs have repeatedly raised concerns about the impact of bank branch closures on vulnerable customers amid fears many people could effectively be cut off from their money.
In August, Matt Hammerstein, chief executive of Barclays UK, said fewer than 10 per cent of all transactions take place inside a branch, while NatWest said 60 per cent of its retail customers now exclusively use digital channels.
He added nine in ten interactions with customers take place via telephone, internet or smartphone, while 99 per cent of cash withdrawals are at an ATM.
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