Bank to shut 70 branches

TSB will close 70 more branches next year – nearly a quarter of its remaining network – including seven branches in the Midlands.

The announcement by the bank, adds to the 164 closures announced in 2020 and is being blamed on the decline in use of branches by customers, which the bank said has been accelerated by the pandemic.

TSB said 150 staff would be affected, but all were to be offered alternative roles at the business.

The Midlands branches which will close are in Longbridge, Melton Mowbray, Redditch, Sherwood, Shrewsbury, Solihull and Worcester.

The bank, which was taken over by Lloyds in the 1990s, re-emerged on the high street as a separate brand with more than 600 branches in 2013 and was acquired by Spain’s Sabadell, its current owners.

After the latest round of closures, it will be left with just 220 sites.

TSB said in recent years it had seen a “significant decrease in branch use” and that it saw “no prospect of branch transactions returning to pre-COVID levels.”

“The COVID-19 pandemic has further accelerated the shift away from branch services, with customers shopping and doing more online,” TSB said.

“Over 90% of customer transactions are now carried out digitally and video banking accounts for over 90% of mortgage appointments.”

It said the branches that are to shut conduct around 32% fewer transactions than TSB’s national average and that there is a Post Office or free-to-use cash machine within a mile of each affected site.

TSB also said it was upgrading around 140 branches and launching “pop-up” services in communities where it takes longer to reach the nearest branch.