WA-based bank Bankwest is now becoming a purely digital bank and will close all of its branches by the end of October.
As more consumers use online banking services, fewer branches are being utilised and Bankwest’s parent company CommBank has seen the writing on the wall.
The bank said it will transition to a digital bank in 2024, to “accelerate investment in delivering simple and easy digital banking and broker services to meet the needs of more homeowners across Australia.”
The main decision behind this transition is due to the “rapidly changing customer preferences”, according to Bankwest.
Digital transactions make up 97 per cent of all transactions with less than two per cent of customers visiting a branch regularly.
According to Bankwest, its WA branches now average about 30 over-the-counter transactions per day, and 15 in regional WA.
There are currently 45 Bankwest branches and CommBank will shutter the majority of them with 15 regional being converted into a CommBank branch.
Those who work in the branch will not be losing their job with CommBank offering them roles.
We’ve been evolving for 129 years to meet the changing needs of our customers and, today, we’ve announced our future vision as a national digital bank, alongside the decision to close our branch network.
— Bankwest (@Bankwest) March 6, 2024
Read the full announcement on our website: https://t.co/gR0lgZ0ZlO pic.twitter.com/496BnLvqAo
Bankwest said it will be getting in direct contact with those customers who frequent the bank too to ensure they aren’t left in the lurch.
Bankwest executive general manager Jason Chan said he recognised the change would be challenging for some customers and that supporting them in the transition, while retaining impacted branch colleagues in new roles, were his main priorities.
“I understand this will be difficult news for some of our customers and Bankwest is introducing a range of support measures to help our customers who are regular branch users carefully through this transition,” he said.
“It’s critical we prioritise investment for the majority of our customers who expect leading digital and broker banking services, and rarely use branches, but we have a clear focus on the needs of our regular branch users at this time.”
For more information on closure dates, Bankwest customers can look at the FAQ page.
Image: Athina Mallis/Gizmodo