Posted on 02/01/2024 6:36:48 AM PST by Red Badger
Banks are shutting hundreds of branches a year - this month some 41 closures were announced in a single week and among those affected were nine US Bank locations.
Bank of America, Chase, PNC, Citizen, Capital One, First National Bank of Pennsylvania and Huntington also said they were axing branches.
Such closures deal a huge blow to customers looking to visit in person to submit a document, make a withdrawal or deposit, cash in a check or simply run through their finances with a trusted bank manager.
Others, particularly the elderly, may struggle with accessing banking services online due to a lack of fluency with the internet or smartphone apps.
Customers can visit the next town or city but it can mean driving an hour or even across state lines, as one DailyMail.com reader told us. So what can you do if your bank has closed your local branch and you don't want to travel?
Unfortunately, the options are limited to either switching your bank or exploring what sort of services can be accessed using a nearby ATM.
The number of bank branches in the US peaked at over 85,000 in around 2011. Over the last 10 years, it has shrunk by approximately 13,000, according to a combination of data from the FDIC and the OCC.
The Covid pandemic catalyzed the already-rapid uptake of online banking and although 2020 saw the sharpest decline in the number of branches, closures have continued.
Online banks While traditional banks have increased the breadth of services they offer via an internet browser or smartphone app, online-only banks are optimized to provide a full range of services remotely.
Some of the most popular online banks include Ally and SoFi, which have slick mobile apps with convenient and intuitive user interfaces.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
A cashless society is not so bad. In fact, it already exists. I pay everything with electronic payments for recurring bills and using a credit card for current transactions. All incoming receipts are direct deposits to bank accounts.
Records of all accounts that matter are available from the various online sites.
Currency is a paper representation of an entry on the government electronic ledger
I do in fact carry some cash but seldom pay with it. The only certain recurring transaction is for a hair cut.
The credit card statement provides a ledger of all transactions and it is easy to separate business from personal transactions.
I don't have that problem.............😒
I can’t remember the last time I went in a bank branch. Wait, I do. I had Euros from a past trip to Europe and wanted to turn them into dollars. That was about a year and half ago.
They are closing because they aren’t needed.
I can’t remember the last time I stepped into a bank other than when I got a “Homeowner insurance” check.
We bank at “Old Glory” and it’s 100% online or via ATM. We also have a small account with PNC for the “just in case” scenario that we need to cash a large check.
Either way, in the past 5 years, I have been in a bank twice.
Sounds like me, sorta. I have money in 5 banks. I’ve never been to 4 of them. I don’t even have an ATM card or a debit card because they are a recipe for problems. Don’t need them. The banks are in my computer and everything works fine. I have everything on auto-pay or on my main credit card with 2% cash back. I never even Venmo or any of that other stuff.
Banks don’t need locations, they just computing power.
Did not realizes how the cashless practice has infiltrated to that degree. Have no interest in it. Still using cash and hand written checks. I guess since a relative got his accounts cleaned out 25 years ago I have no interest in on line banking with theft option.
I had a very interesting conversation with a bank executive a few years ago. He said most bank branches that exist today would never be built now. In most cases, those that remain open are there because the banking industry has come to understand a peculiar mindset of many bank customers: they prefer to do business with a bank that has a local branch even if they do 100% of their banking online. The local branch gives them a level of comfort that it is there just in case they need to deal with someone in person.
Last time I was in a ‘bank’ was when I was given a check on that particular bank from a buyer of a car that I had sold.
They wanted to charge me a 10% check cashing fee! Because I didn’t have an account at their bank. I said that this check is written on this bank, they said it didn’t matter.
I told them hell no and went across the parking lot to my Credit Union and deposited the check. Cost me nothing...............
Chase just opened two new branches in my area, about 2 miles apart.
Waaaay back, we started out with a LNB (a local bank), they got bought out by Hibernia Bank (a regional bank), they got bought out by CapitalOne.
CapitalOne, over the past year, has closed every single branch and ATM within 35 miles of us.
We recently dropped em like a hot potato and went with another local bank.
That’s why we use a Credit Union. Same one for forty years...............
I’ve only had to actually go in a bank branch 3 times this century. Twice was to close accounts of dead people. And once for certified check for the down payment on my house. And technically I could have done that one online. Branch banks are simple post dated.
Loans. The small deposits aren’t money makers on their own, but the banks can borrow from the Fed a multiplier of their reserves and assets. So small branches serve as collection plate to boost the entire enterprise’s borrowing and loan capacity.
All the youngsters are using ON LINE BANKS ONLY.
Ally Bank is one of the biggest My 25 year old son is an example of this. He has a checking account and a high interest savings account with them. He has a one year CD with another he locked in @ 5.50%.
Having all these brick and mortar branches is an additional expense. Unless you are in a rich suburb with a lot of OLD people, there is no reason to have a location there.
The world of banking has changed. There was a time when people took their paychecks to the bank to the deposit and then withdrew cash , at a time before Electronic Banking and before ATM existed.
Nowadays there are few transactions that cannot be conducted online or through the ATM.
Offhand it’s hard to think of what transactions that you must go visit the bank and talk to a human being. Perhaps if you are getting a loan and need to go inside the bank and sign paperwork with an actual pen and not online with an e-signature?
You know where all this is going.
ONE BANK TO RULE THEM ALL.............................
I have a local bank myself.
I personally am leery of online banking because I feel it is too easy to hacked; but, that is just me.
Well, in three towns where I live BofA has closed branches in everyone of them forcing me to go places a traditionally don’t for banking.
The close one in Morgan Hill of Cochrane and kept the one on Tennant open. Makes sense, as it is a more trafficked area and central to town.
They close another in Gilroy, downtown. Makes sense since they have a location right next to Costco and Walmart.
They closed another in Hollister. Same deal.
closed several in San Jose as well and Fremont.
Might have to go to one of those online banks or Walmart banking from now for cash
I moved all of my banking to Credit Union of Texas: they routinely add new branches. Service is excellent.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.