Bank Branch Closures Spark Fears For SMEs
4th December 2017.
Taxpayer-owned RBS has sparked concerns for small businesses after announcing plans to axe a quarter of its bank branches with the loss of 680 jobs.
The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is to close 259 of its 1,003 branches in the UK, provoking concerns that small businesses are not getting enough support.
The Scottish secretary David Mundell has said he is seeking an urgent meeting with RBS to discuss the impact these closures will bring, describing branches in rural areas as “a lifeline for many people”.
UK lenders are closing a record number of branches this year as their customers increasingly choose to bank online. Union Unite has warned the wave of closures could “mark the end of branch network banking”.
RBS had already announced 158 branch closures in March with the loss of 500 jobs, with Lloyds axing 49 branches. Analysis by The Telegraph has put the total number of bank branch closures planned for this year at 661.