Bank bosses ALL live within 15 minutes of a local branch, investigation reveals
Bank bosses ALL live within 15 minutes of a local branch, research shows – while a fifth of their clients are forced to commute for hours amid widespread closures
Bank bosses will not bear the brunt of their massive store closures – research shows they all live within 15 minutes of a local branch.
It was revealed last week that one-fifth of customers now have to commute an hour to visit the nearest bank.
Some who lived in rural areas reported journeys lasting more than three hours – a huge problem for the elderly and vulnerable who cannot use technology in lieu of a face-to-face visit.
Now that the Mail has found that no CEO or chairman of the eight banks that have closed the most branches will make a long trip.
Of the 11 with addresses in this country, six lived within ten minutes by car of their branch, and three lived just five minutes away.
Santander chairman William Vereker, 62, is listed in a £17m mansion seven minutes from a central London branch
By the end of this year, HSBC, NatWest, Nationwide, Barclays, Virgin Money, TSB, Santander and Lloyds will have closed 2,277 outlets since 2019.
The worst offender is Barclays with 614 stores closed or due to close in that period, according to Which?.
But the chairman, Nigel Higgins, 62, has a £3 million Victorian stall just three minutes from the nearest central London store.
Country chairman Kevin Parry, 61, also owns a townhouse in one of central London’s most desirable spots, just five minutes from his nearest branch.
But even if he’s outside the capital on his £2m Cotswolds country staple, he’s only 25 minutes from a nationwide base.
Neither is among the 72 stores that will be closed in December.
Dame Alison Rose-Slade, Britain’s first major female bank boss, lives just five minutes from her nearest branch in North London. This outlet is not one of 126 that NatWest plans to close.
Neither is one of their branches in west London, which is conveniently located just five minutes from their chairman Sir Howard Davies’ £2.3million Victorian flat.
Nearby, William Vereker, the 62-year-old chairman of Santander, is listed in a £17 million mansion seven minutes from a central London branch. This is not one of 310 the bank has scheduled for closure.
Nationwide said it “will not leave any town or city where we are currently located until 2024.”
Barclays said it’s adding face-to-face support and NatWest said it’s investing in customer support. Santander did not comment.