SANTANDER is shutting 95 of its high street branches as part of a major shake-up.
The bank currently has 444 branches across the UK.
Santander has said it is closing 95 of its high street branches[/caption]
However it says it will be shutting a significant portion of these as well as making more of its branches counter-free and reduced-hours.
Santander said closing branches was a “difficult decision” but it wanted to ensure its business is “fit for the future”.
Major banks have been increasingly turning away from the high street as more people move to online banking.
Traditional bricks and mortar banks have also faced stiff competition from online-only challenger banks, which are often able to offer more favourable rates to customers due to their lower costs.
Announcing the changes this morning, Santander said the shake-up would mean it has 290 full-service branches across the UK.
A further 36 branches will have reduced hours, 18 will be counter-free, and five will be Work Cafes.
The new Work Cafe concept includes co-working spaces, superfast WiFi and dedicated event spaces which can be accessed for free.
