Lloyds to close 95 more bank branches across UK
Lloyds Banking Group is set to make a further full to its branch network with 95 sites face the shutter.
The FTSE 100 banking giant announced the fresh closures on Wednesday, which will affect Lloyds, Halifax and Bank of Scotland sites. The closures will take place between May 2026 and March 2027.
Lloyds will take up the lionshare off the closures at 53 followed by 31 from Halifax and 11 from the Bank of Scotland.
It marks the latest round in Lloyds transformation strategy for its branch network, with 49 sites expected to be close. The bank will retain 610 branches once all announced changes are complete.
Last week Santander said it would close another 44 branches, which will put 291 jobs at risk of redundancy, as the bank turns its focus to its digital offer to keep at pace with its fintech competitors.
Banks have honed focus on their digital offering – often at the expense of their branch network – in the last few years in order to remain competitive.
Morning Wire revealed last year told some 6,000 tech and engineering staff that their jobs may be at risk of redundancy as it overhauls the structure of the business and creates new roles designed to accelerate technology development.
HSBC and Nationwide steer from the Lloyds path
But some banks have bucked the trend in a bid to woo customers.
HSBC has promised it will not shut any branches in the UK until at least 2027 with a £55.8m pledged for its network this year. The sum is 30 per cent higher than last year’s investment.
In November, Nationwide committed to keeping all of its branches open until at least 2030, as it reported a rise in customers visiting its outposts.
The building society has managed to pick up fleeing customers from Britain’s banking giants with its branch pledge, as well as a number of switch offers to sweeten the deal for users.
A spokeswoman for Lloyds said: “Customers want the freedom to bank in the way that works for them and we offer more choice and ways to manage money than ever before.
“From our leading apps and 24/7 messaging service to local banking options like our community bankers, PayPoint and access to all of our Lloyds, Halifax and Bank of Scotland branches, we’re giving our customers the flexibility to bank wherever and whenever they need us.”