BankSA closes country branches

Instead the bank said it would join with Australia Post to offer over the counter services at nearly 300 locations.

This Bank@Post system will include the 20 closed branches and other remote areas where BankSA has never had a branch.

It will also introduce a Bank Local service in partnership with select regional councils to deliver services through council chambers.

BankSA chief executive Nick Reade said that the changes being implemented were against a backdrop of unprecedented shifts in customer behaviour toward favouring mobile and online banking.

“While 95pc of all BankSA transactions no longer involve a face-to-face interaction in a branch, this number is even higher in many regional communities, where 97pc of transactions are performed at ATMs, over the phone or internet, or increasingly using an app on a mobile device,” Mr Reade said.

“While this phenomenon means that in many ways banking is easier, quicker and more convenient than ever before, it also means transaction volumes at some BankSA branches have fallen to unsustainable levels, even in locations where they are only open a few days a week.

“Branch closures are always difficult decisions and, because we know how they can impact some smaller communities, we have worked hard to ensure continuity of face-to-face banking services while addressing declining transaction volumes at some branches.”

Mr Reade said BankSA would still have the largest branch network in the state.

The 20 branches to close are