TSB has become the latest big bank to fall victim to work-from-home culture as it plans to move to a smaller head office in the City of London this summer.
The lender is moving its premises from its base on Gresham Street, which is often half-empty, to a smaller site in Bishopsgate, also on the Square Mile.
TSB chief executive Robin Bulloch is understood to be keen to see more staff at their desks, especially as those in its branches cannot work from home.
But the banking group does not impose minimum attendance requirements on staff.
Working from home became inevitable for many during the pandemic, but some major corporations, including Goldman Sachs, have criticized its persistence long after it was necessary. Some politicians believe it is holding back the economy.
Stepping up: TSB hopes new, smarter site will encourage more staff to take the journey to work
TSB hopes the new, smarter site will encourage more staff to make the journey to work.
The bank would like to attract people every day and not just during the Tuesday to Thursday hours that many prefer, the Mail on Sunday understands.
It follows banking giant HSBC’s decision to downsize its headquarters in Canary Wharf to a new headquarters near the London Stock Exchange. Last week it emerged that Lloyds Banking Group, which was previously spread across four locations in the City of London, would consolidate into three and vacate its London Wall offices next year.
Working from home has taken hold following the exodus from the office during the Covid lockdowns in 2020.
Some business leaders and ministers have argued that a return to nine-to-five working, five days a week from employer premises, is necessary to restore productivity and revitalize city centres.
The TSB headquarters is understood to be only 50 to 60 per cent occupied much of the time.
Bulloch has made it clear to a leadership group of more than 100 senior employees that he expects them to be there at least a couple of days a week. However, there is no plan to make attendance mandatory, after managers saw the huge reaction from its biggest rival, Lloyds, when it said all office staff had to be inside for at least two days.
Bulloch divides his time between offices in London and Edinburgh.
This contrasts with the approach taken by Mike Regnier, chief executive of rival Santander UK, who recently revealed that he spends much of his time working from home in Yorkshire.
Regnier told a newspaper he would have turned down the job offered by the Spanish-owned lender if it had refused him to work from Harrogate.
It comes as TSB faces an uncertain future amid a hostile takeover approach of its Spanish parent company Sabadell by Madrid rival BBVA.
It is considered that, at best, BBVA is non-committal on what it has said so far about the future of TSB should it win the takeover battle.
Staff at the British bank are worried about what the future could hold if BBVA takes control.
Some speculate that the banking group could be sold to a private equity buyer or return to the stock market.
TSB was previously briefly listed in London after being spun off by Lloyds Banking Group. It was later bought by Sabadell in 2015.
A TSB spokesperson said: ‘We have made changes to some of our offices to provide more modern collaborative workplaces for colleagues that align with our ways of working model.
“This includes Birmingham, Barnwood, Swansea and our upcoming move to Bishopsgate, London.”