Fifth Third To Close 100 Branches To Focus On Mobile Banking

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Customers of Fifth Third Bank will have fewer options when it comes to doing business at a physical location as the company plans to close or consolidate 100 branches and scrap plans to open 30 new locations. Fifth Third Bank’s decision to cut back on branches comes as the lender shifts focus toward mobile and online services, Cincinnati.com reports. “This plan reflects the continued progression of our work on providing an integrated customer experience,” Kevin Kabat, CEO and vice chairman tells Cincinnati.com. “Meeting the evolving preferences of how our customers interact with us is our top priority.” The Ohio-based bank says that the consolidation will cost it between $75 million and $85 million in impairment charges and up to $10 million in other costs, including the termination of real estate contracts. The company says in the long-term, the changes will save roughly $60 million a year. Locations set to close or be consolidated have yet to be identified. Fifth Third currently operates 1,301 full-service branches in Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Florida, Tennessee, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Missouri, Georgia and North Carolina. The lender made headlines last year as one of the final banking institutions to offer payday loan-like products for customers. Fifth Third eventually announced it would discontinue its use of the often under-fire program, but backtracked in late 2014, saying it would continue with a revised, supposedly less harmful version of the service for existing customers. Fifth Third cutting up to 100 branches [Cincinnati.com]

1. by Ashlee Kieler
2. via Consumerist

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