<?xml version="1.0" encoding="ISO-8859-1"?> <docID>337999</docID> <postdate>2025-02-11 13:12:30</postdate> <headline>Banks agree: no regional branch closures – until 2027</headline> <body><p><img class="size-full wp-image-338000" src="https://citynews.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/20230617001811486878-original-resized.jpg" alt="" width="900" height="600" /></p> <caption>The big banks have agreed to a two-and-a-half-year moratorium on regional branch closures. (Joel Carrett/AAP PHOTOS)</caption> <p><span class="kicker-line">By <b>Stephanie Gardiner </b>and <strong>Andrew Brown</strong></span></p> <p><strong>The last bank in Mannum closed at the worst possible time – just as flood waters were engulfing the South Australian town on the Murray River.</strong></p> <p>For the historic town that relies on tourism, hospitality and farming, the federal government's moratorium on regional bank closures is cold comfort.</p> <p>"It's too little, too late, that was our last bank in 6000 square kilometres," Mayor Simone Bailey told AAP of the Westpac group's BankSA branch closure in 2022.</p> <p>"But... it's good for the other towns that haven't had it happen to them yet."</p> <p>Treasurer Jim Chalmers on Tuesday announced the moratorium until the end of July 2027, after a year-long inquiry revealed rural Australians' fears about dwindling essential services in the bush.</p> <p>"If we want a strong national economy, then regional Australia needs to be a big part of the story," he told reporters.</p> <p>"That means making sure that banking services are available to the businesses and workers and people and communities of regional Australia.</p> <p>"We also want to make sure that there are still face-to-face services for people who need them in the bush and people for whom digital alternatives may not necessarily work."</p> <p>Nearly 850 banks have closed across regional, rural and remote Australia since June 2017, according to Australian Prudential Regulation Authority data.</p> <p>The moratorium came after NAB accepted a new agreement not to close regional branches, with the Commonwealth Bank and Westpac extending previous commitments.</p> <p>A moratorium was already in place at ANZ, following their takeover of Suncorp.</p> <p>Australia Post has also signed an agreement with the major banks to increase their commitment to services through post offices.</p> <p>Hundreds of regional Australians told a Senate inquiry of the major flow-on effects of bank closures.</p> <p>Many said banks were central to the social fabric of small towns, keeping vulnerable and elderly people connected and community groups afloat.</p> <p>Farmers and tourism operators told the inquiry bank managers with extensive local knowledge were critical to their lucrative operations.</p> <p>Residents in several towns spoke of having to travel long distances to do their banking, including a 700km round trip for people in Tom Price after Westpac shut shop in the Pilbara town in late 2022.</p> <p>Some remote business owners described going to extreme lengths to make to make cash deposits, including stuffing suitcases full of cash and flying to a capital city.</p> <p>The banks told the inquiry more than 95 per cent of their transactions were digital, demand for cash had dramatically reduced and face-to-face transactions were increasingly rare.</p> <p>The NSW Riverina town of Junee successfully fought against the closure of its Commonwealth Bank, which was slated to shut in March 2023.</p> <p>Junee Licorice and Chocolate Factory manager Rhiannon Druce said the moratorium was a good start to keep banks in the regions.</p> <p>"It's necessary... if we want to see people move to the country and lure businesses to the country," Ms Druce said.</p> <p>She said the reversal of CBA's decision to close the local branch dramatically improved the relationship between the bank and locals, who were keen to utilise the service.</p> <p>Australian Banking Association chief executive Anna Bligh said the industry was committed to customers in regional areas.</p> <p>"This is a major commitment to make sure regional customers can continue to visit a branch and access services if they wish to do so."</p> </body>