Three more Commonwealth Bank branches across Australia are set to close next month. The branches in well-populated areas of Coogee in NSW, Coolangatta in Queensland, and Adelaide’s Rundle Mall in South Australia, will be shuttered by March 1, according to the bank.
Commonwealth Bank called the permanent closures a “difficult decision” based on progressive declines in customer demand at the branches.
At the Rundle Mall branch in Adelaide, transactions dropped by 47 per cent over the past five years.
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In Coogee, transactions at the branch dropped by 52 per cent over the past five years, and at the Coolangatta branch by 29 per cent over the same time.
“We regularly review our services across Australia to help inform decisions on where to open, renovate or upgrade branches, or in some instances where to close branches,” the Commonwealth Bank told 7NEWS.com.au.
“After a recent review, we made the difficult decision to permanently close our Rundle Mall Adelaide, Coolangatta and Coogee branches.
“Staff will be available to provide one-on-assistance until Friday, March 1, 2024 to help equip and educate customers with alternative banking options.
“We’re proud to provide customers with many different ways to access banking services — via our branches, ATMs, mobile and premier bankers, phone banking, messaging, online or via the CommBank app, as well as Bank@Post.”
Of 22 employees currently working across the three soon-to-close branches, all but one will be relocated to “appropriate, comparable roles suitable to their needs,” Commonwealth Bank told 7NEWS.com.au.
“We are also supporting the remaining staff member to find potential opportunities,” the bank said.
Hundreds of Aussie bank branches lopped
The closures are just the latest of many, after three of the bank’s branches shut down in Sydney, Perth and Melbourne last year, and nearly 200 jobs were axed in the same states.
But Commonwealth Bank is not the only bank shuttering its branches.
This week, NAB announced it would close 13 branches this year, and Bankwest announced it will close two more branches.
The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) found in the 12 months to June 2023, a total of 424 branches — 11 per cent of Australia’s overall branches — vanished.
That data also reveals 122 of those branches — 7 per cent of Australia’s branches — were located in regional and remote areas.
But Commonwealth Bank has confirmed it will not close any more regional branches until at least the end of 2026.
Renovating the remaining branches
The Commonwealth Bank branch closures come as refurbishments are completed and planned for nearby branches.
In Adelaide, the King William St branch 700m away will receive a $5 million refurbishment.
Nearly half of the Rundle St branch customers also visit this branch, in addition to the Gouger St, Torrensville and Norwood branches.
And 37 per cent of regular customers at the closing Coogee branch were also found to visit the nearby Randwick branch, which has been expanded, along with branches at Bondi Junction, Maroubra and Westfield Eastgardens.
No refurbishments or investments have been announced for branches near Coolangatta, where 33 per cent of customers were found to visit other nearby branches in Tweed City Shopping Centre and The Pines Elanora.
“We recognise some customers prefer over-the-counter banking,” Commonwealth Bank told 7NEWS.com.au.
“We invest around $60 million in our branch network each year to upgrade or refurbish existing branches and open new branches where we see customer demand.”