Natwest announces closure of 55 branches across the country - including mobile banking service in Welshpool
Welshpool's mobile banking service is on the latest list of branches set to be closed by a major retail bank.
Natwest is planning to close 55 branches nationwide, with Welshpool's mobile banking van on Tesco's car park among those to be cut.
The bank says the service, which runs betwen 1.45pm and 2.30pm at the former Welshpool Smithfield site, will end on September 29.
The move will leave the town's Natwest customers with access to over-the-counter banking services on just one day a week at the banking hub on Broad Street, or facing a 25-mile round trip to the nearest branch in Newtown.
Welshpool's banking hub opened in December 2023 in the town's former Lloyds bank building, providing a shared counter location for five banks, who each run services from the site on a one-day-per-week basis.
"Over 80 per cent of our active current account holders now use our digital services and over 97 per cent of retail accounts with us are now opened online," said a Natwest spokesperson.
"Our customers appreciate the speed and convenience of digital banking for everyday transactions, and often, when it comes to making bigger, more complex decisions they value speaking to our skilled and experienced colleagues.
"We expect to invest over £20 million in our network across the UK in 2025 to improve customer service, enhance the look and feel of our branches, and reduce the environmental impact of our buildings, as well as continuing to invest in shared solutions like the Post Office and Banking Hubs."
Research conducted by consumer champion Which? found that more than 6,000 bank branches have been shuttered in the UK since 2015, with rural towns and villages hit particularly hard by the closures.
Welshpool was left without an over-the-counter banking service for around a year after Lloyds closed its branch in the town in January 2023, the last high street bank to leave the town after the closures of Barclays and HSBC.
Natwest, Lloyds, HSBC, Barclays and Santander all offer face-to-face services from the Welshpool banking hub, which is run by Cash Access UK - a not-for-profit company which is funded by major high street banks.
