Banks in the East Midlands are among those closing
HSBC says it will close 114 more branches in the UK from April, as customers using them have fallen significantly since the pandemic.Banks have closed thousands of branches in recent years as more people bank online and lenders cut costs.
Jackie Uhi, HSBC's managing director of UK distribution, said people were changing the way they bank and footfall in many branches was at an "all-time low, with no signs of it returning".She said the decision to close a branch was "never easy or taken lightly", especially if it was the last branch in an area.
Hundreds of branches are being axed every year. That is far faster rate than potential replacements can be opened to help those left struggling.have been earmarked for 27 areas of the UK, with only two having opened their doors so far. The latest closures come after HSBC said in March that it planned to shut 69 branches by this autumn.
The shift to online banking has seen High Street banks and building societies close more than 5,200 branches since 2015,Lloyds Banking Group, which owns Halifax and Bank of Scotland, has closed more than 850, with plans to close more than 70 more in 2023It has left some communities without access to bank branches, while many cash machines have also shut.
"It's unacceptable for bank customers to wait up to 30 minutes to speak to someone [by telephone] when it's their only choice because their local branch has vanished," he said.
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