UK banks have closed more than one in three branches since 2019, slimming the country’s high-street network to 6,870 outlets, new Office for National Statistics data show.

This figure represents a 34 per cent fall from 10,410 sites five years ago, and the retreat is set to continue with another 113 closures by Lloyds, NatWest, Halifax and Bank of Scotland scheduled before the end of November.

Banks argue that customers are voting with their thumbs. From 2020 to 2024 the share of Britons using digital channels to reach banking services rose from 33 per cent to 59 per cent, while branch footfall kept falling. Peter Tyler, director of personal banking at trade body UK Finance, said the shift “is driven by customer demand,” noting that it has “led to a reduction in footfall in branches.”

Even so, the vanishing counters have stirred warnings about “banking deserts” and cash scarcity, especially for older and vulnerable users. In response to new Financial Conduct Authority rules requiring firms to plug gaps in cash provision, major lenders have pledged 350 shared banking hubs, operated by the Post Office, by 2029. To date, only 179 have opened.

The latest ONS figures show there is now one branch for every 10,000 people in the UK, compared with 4.9 in France and 2.5 in Spain and Portugal.

While Nationwide has promised to keep all branches until at least 2028, most incumbents are following the digital tide and eyeing further savings from bricks-and-mortar retrenchment. As closures gather pace, the balance between efficiency and inclusion will remain firmly on the regulatory radar.

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