The spectacle of NAB again starting to close rural bank branches...

The spectacle of NAB again starting to close rural bank branches is not good publicity, especially when one would think having someone on the ground in fertile, highly productive dairying country (Cobden Vic) or prime agricultural land with some industry (Blayney) would be helpful to NAB writing (or keeping) lots of farm/business customers, areas in which it has the biggest market share of any bank in Oz.

From my perspective, however, it's even more vital that NAB re-signs for another three (or even five) years for the extremely useful Bank@Post service offered through 3500 or so Australia Post official and licensed post offices nationwide. This is an extremely handy service. ANZ was the only 'major' not to sign up again in about 2019 and lost business as a result. With so many country towns lacking each 'major's' physical presence, Bank@Post allows one to withdraw cash and undertake some other banking tasks.

Bank@Post is well used and worth NAB (and 70 other banks!) belonging to. $25 million is a very small sum for NAB.

By the way, NAB already slashed opening hours at many branches in the country so it has already reduced costs.

NAB (including Ms Slade) ought remember that it has a 'social licence' to operate and that in rural Australia, personal relationships with individuals such as banking staff are very important, more so than in the big cities.

Why can't it just reduce opening hours and offer some locals part time employment if existing staff want to look elsewhere for jobs offering longer hours?

An exclusive story from the excellent 'The Weekend Australian' of 6-7 February 2021:

'Australia’s biggest agribusiness lender, NAB, has quietly begun closing regional bank branches, blaming COVID-19 for a fall in foot traffic in country areas as more people bank online.

NAB customers in six country towns began receiving letters this week, informing them their branch was “permanently closing”. The bank made no major announcement, unlike in 2019 when it introduced a moratorium on regional bank closures, which ended on December 31.

It continues a wave of bricks and mortar closures across regional communities, with the number of country bank branches plummeting 11 per cent to 2202 in the past four years, according to latest data from the Australian Prudential Regulatory Authority.

While rural communities are fighting to keep businesses open to ensure their survival. Two of the six branches that will close in April are in Trade Minister Dan Tehan’s electorate in south-west Victoria at Cobden and Balmoral. The others are in Dorrigo and Blayney in NSW and Bargara and Murgon in Queensland

Mr Tehan said: “National Australia Bank has made the decision to close its branches and it should answer to its customers about the reasons for it”.

But NAB Personal Banking Group Executive Rachel Slade said the bank was “proud” it had honoured its regional shutdown moratorium.

“We are proud of the commitment we made in 2019 not to close any regional and rural branches until January 2021” Ms Slade said.

“That commitment provided certainty for our customers and colleagues, many who were living through drought...

...In 2018, NAB was one of the first banks to sign up to Bank@Post, which involved paying a community representation fee or $22m a year to access more than 3500 post offices.

But the three-year deal is up for renewal this year, and with the rise of online banking it is not yet certain if the major banks - with the exception of ANZ, which didn’t sign up to deal in the first place - will sign similar agreements with Australia Post again.

For Cobden residents, the future of over-the-counter NAB banking services is also more uncertain with the town’s licensed post office having been listed for sale for several years. Elders is selling the agency on behalf of its owner, who has worked at the post office for more than 60 years.

According to NAB, almost half of its Cobden customers used the branch just once in the past year, while about 80 per cent also used other branches in nearby towns, including Camperdown, Terang and Timboon, which are within a 20 minute drive.'