AIB’S decision to shut eight branches in the north is ‘a scandalous dereliction of its societal role’, the Financial Services Union has said.
The closure of branches in Omagh, Coleraine, Lisburn, Lurgan, Kilkeel, Newcastle, Bangor and Glengormley on November 12 2021 will leave the lender, formerly known as First Trust, with just seven outlets across Northern Ireland.
Traditionally labelled as one of the north’s ‘big four’ banks, the move will leave AIB with one of the smallest branch networks in Northern Ireland, well behind GB-based lenders such as Santander, Halifax and Nationwide.
The announcement on Tuesday evening came just days after Danske Bank announced plans to close four of its branches in 2021, and less than a week after Stormont’s Finance Committee passed a motion calling on banks to pause their closure plans.
Bank of Ireland announced plans in March to shut 15 of its branches in the north.
The closures will leave the combined branch network of Ulster Bank, Danske Bank, AIB and Bank of Ireland at 96. It compares to the 300-strong network at the turn of the millennium.
All the banks said the closures were in response to diminishing activity inside branches and the growth of online banking.
AIB said the number of active customers using its branches has fallen by 33 per cent since 2017, with online payments up 52 per cent in the same period.
But FSU general secretary, John O’Connell, who addressed MLAs at Stormont last week on the issue, said: “There is no need for Banks to make these decisions at this time.
“They are using statistics drawn from a period of societal lock down which cannot and should not be relied on to judge future customer behaviour.”
He added: “Change is happening in the banking sector at a rapid pace. If we continue to allow the banks to lead that change, we will end up without a banking infrastructure that will serve all people in our society.
“The FSU call on the main shareholder of AIB, Finance Minister Pascal Donohoe to make a clear statement that banks should desist from destroying the branch network and pause any branch closures until a full debate can happen on the future of banking.”
