The rapid transition to a digital banking society is accelerating, with a series of branch closures in major cities marking a major shift in priorities for Australia’s largest banks.
Commonwealth Bank announced last week it would close three more branches by March 1, including Rundle Mall in Adelaide, Coolangatta on the Gold Coast and Coogee in Sydney’s east.
Last week, NAB announced it would close 13 branches this year and CBA-owned Bankwest will close two more branches.
These closures will add to more than 2,100 branches that have been closed across all major banking institutions over the past six years.
Millions of Australians rely on these branches to look after their finances and, for some groups, including the elderly and people with disabilities, they are the only means of banking.
Financial Sector Union national secretary Julia Angrisano said the closures indicated a “desertion” of an important service and had a “devastating impact” on communities, particularly those living in regional and remote areas.
The rapid transition to a digital banking society is accelerating, with a series of branch closures in major cities marking a major shift in priorities for Australia’s largest banks.
Millions of Australians rely on these branches to look after their finances and for some groups, including the elderly and people with disabilities, they are the only means of banking (file image).
“Banks have been using branch closures to prop up their huge profits for years and it is time they are forced to maintain customer service in local communities in regional and metropolitan areas,” he said.
However, the impact on people living in cities should not diminish, as thousands of people are forced to use a decreasing number of branches.
‘There are 800,000 people passing through Rundle Mall every week and many will be CBA customers; However, the bank has decided to close the branch with the loss of 13 jobs,” said Ms. Angrisano.
‘This is Adelaide’s busiest shopping area, but CBA customers and businesses are told to find a branch elsewhere in the city if they need to visit a bank branch.
“Coogee is in the middle of Sydney’s densely populated eastern suburbs, with many older customers, but that branch is also up and running.”
Three of the big four banks – and a further 80 financial institutions – have redirected their customers to one of Australia Post’s 3,500 branches where they can use the Bank@Post service to deposit and withdraw cash and make balance enquiries.
The former Commonwealth Bank building on the main street of Bellingen, New South Wales. Three more CBA branches will close in March
CBA Rundle Mall closes as Big Four bank slowly moves business online
“Banks claim that customers can bank at the post office, but there is only a limited service available at post offices so this is not a realistic option and not all banks have a contract with Australia Post,” said Ms. Angrisano. .
The services a branch offers to its local community go far beyond simple cash transactions, with identity checks, loan applications and a variety of other important face-to-face service interactions that are vital to effectively serving customers. .
“All of these interactions have one thing in common,” Ms. Angrisano said. «They must be carried out by a duly qualified bank employee. They cannot be done at a post office.
The number of branches in major cities and metropolitan areas has dropped 39 percent over the past six years. Adam Trevorrow of the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority told a federal Senate inquiry in December 2023.