Lloyds Banking Group<\/strong> has announced the closure of 136 branches<\/strong> across its three brands: Lloyds Bank, Halifax, and Bank of Scotland<\/strong>. The closures, scheduled between May 2024 and March 2026<\/strong>, mark another significant reduction in the number of physical bank branches<\/strong> in the UK as digital banking continues to grow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The bank cited the ongoing shift towards online and mobile banking<\/strong> as the key reason for these closures. A Lloyds Banking Group spokesperson<\/strong> highlighted that over 20 million customers<\/strong> now manage their accounts via the bank\u2019s mobile app and online services<\/strong>, reducing the demand for in-person banking<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
To support customers affected by the closures, the bank emphasized the availability of alternative banking options<\/a><\/strong>, including:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The bank also confirmed that all employees at closing branches<\/strong> would be offered alternative roles<\/strong> within the company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Despite the rise in digital banking, the closures may disproportionately affect elderly and vulnerable customers<\/strong>. According to consumer group Which?<\/strong>, since January 2015<\/strong>, the UK has lost over 6,214 bank and building society branches<\/strong>, averaging around 53 closures per month<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Although many UK residents now bank online, data shows that only 14% of those aged 85 and older<\/strong> use digital banking, raising concerns that some individuals may face challenges accessing financial services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
These closures follow a recent restructuring of in-person banking services<\/strong> across the group’s three brands. Under the new policy, customers of Lloyds, Halifax, and Bank of Scotland<\/strong> can now visit any branch within the group for banking services, rather than being limited to their specific brand\u2019s locations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This move is aimed at providing greater flexibility<\/strong>, but the overall reduction in branches could still make in-person services less accessible in certain areas<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Notable locations include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Key closures include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Significant closures include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The closure of these 136 branches<\/strong> is part of a broader trend in the UK banking sector<\/strong>, where financial institutions continue to reduce their physical presence in response to shifting customer preferences<\/strong>. While digital banking offers greater convenience<\/strong> for many, the loss of local branches raises concerns about accessibility, particularly for older and less tech-savvy customers<\/strong>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Lloyds Banking Group is set to shut down 136 branches across Lloyds, Halifax, and Bank of Scotland, citing a shift to digital banking. With thousands of branches already closed in recent years, concerns grow over who will be most affected. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":100869,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[44],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-100865","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-33","no-featured-image-padding"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100865","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=100865"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100865\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":100868,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100865\/revisions\/100868"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/100869"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=100865"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=100865"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=100865"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}