BofA And Wells Fargo Shutter A Combined 36 Branches Across The US. Is The U.S. Headed Toward Another Banking Crisis?
The Comptroller of the Currency is reporting that BofA and Wells Fargo have closed 21 and 15 branches respectfully since October 1, 2023. US Bank and Chase are continuing to close bank branches. So far, the major banks have closed 54 branches since the start of the 4th quarter of 2023.
US Bank and Chase reported closing nine and three branches respectively.
Major US banks are continuing to close branches across the US, leaving an increasing number of Americans without access to basic financial services.
Yet, major US banks reported their third quarter earnings. They reported an increase in revenue thanks to higher interest rates saw both banks’ revenues increase.
Will The Major Banks Be Closing More Branches? Are Executives Cashing Out?
Banks must notify the OCC when they close a branch. An OCC spokesperson told the media:
Banking laws require banks and credit unions to notify their primary regulator of closures. However, the statute that requires them to do so does not allow the regulator to object to the closure.
S&P Global Market Intelligence data shows a total of 1,144 bank branches were closed between January 1, 2023 and July 31, 2023.
New Jersey had seen the highest proportion of bank closures of any US state between January and August this year.
New Jersey residents have seen nine branches close for every million people in the Garden State. It was followed by D.C, Connecticut, North Dakota and Virginia.
By comparison, Vermont residents remained relatively unscathed by the bloodbath of bank branch closures. Vermont did not see any locations close during the first two weeks of October.
Four states, Nebraska, West Virginia, South Carolina and Idaho had only seen less than one branch close per one million residents.
As banks are also increasingly turning toward digital services. This is a development which was sped up hugely by the Covid-19 pandemic.
A study by the Federal Reserve showed a 12.4% jump in digital transactions in the first quarter of 2020 alone.
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