Lloyds Banking Group has announced plans to shut 136 bank branches across the United Kingdom, dealing a significant blow to high street banking.
The closures, set to take place between April and November of this year, will affect 66 Lloyds Bank branches, 49 Halifax outlets, and 21 Bank of Scotland locations.
This move comes as part of the banking group’s ongoing strategy to streamline its operations in response to the growing shift towards digital banking.
The company cited a substantial decrease in branch usage, with transactions dropping by 20% since 2019.
Lloyds emphasised that the majority of its personal banking customers now utilise online or mobile banking services.
Despite the closures, Lloyds Banking Group has pledged to maintain its presence in every community it currently serves.
The company plans to achieve this through a combination of branches, banking hubs, and ATMs.
Additionally, Lloyds has committed to redeploying affected staff to alternative roles within the organisation wherever possible, aiming to minimise compulsory redundancies.
This latest round of closures follows a trend in the UK banking sector, with many major banks reducing their physical presence on the high street.
The move has sparked concerns about access to banking services, particularly for elderly and vulnerable customers who may rely more heavily on in-person banking.
