MADRID, November 30 (EUROPA PRESS) –

Bank of England HSBC UK, which is owned by HSBC Holdings, has announced the closure of 114 branches in the UK, 25% of the total network in the country, from April 2023 in response to the changing habits of customers, who continue to migrate from physical to digital banking.

The bank has indicated that, once the closure is complete, its UK branch network will be reduced to 327 branches, while it will make significant investments in expanding the functionality of HSBC UK digital banking.

In the past five years, HSBC UK has stated that usage of its office network by repeat customers has reduced by 65%, noting that the influx of offices about to be closed has reduced by at least 50%, indicating that some of the affected branches are serving less than 250 customers per week.

In contrast, the growth in tele banking adoption demonstrates the need to prioritize a digital approach, as 97.5% of transactions are completed digitally today and 99% of all personal loans and 98% of credit cards are now digitally obtained. .

“People are changing the way they do banking and traffic in many branches is very low with no sign of a comeback. Remote banking is becoming the norm for most of us,” explains Jackie Uhi, Managing Director of UK Distribution at HSBC UK .

“Branch will continue to play an important role in day-to-day banking, while providing dedicated one-on-one support at key times,” he added, noting that, in addition to the branch network, customers can access services through a network of post offices and forthcoming banking centres, along with live chat, social networking, and phone banking.

“We have invested heavily in our ‘post-closure’ strategy, including providing free tablets to select branch customers who don’t yet have the tools for digital banking, along with personalized advice to help them migrate to digital banking,” apostiled