ASB closing nine branches but no jobs to be lost

ASB is closing nine branches permanently, while another 25 branches will only open for three days each week. ASB’s executive general manager retail banking, Craig Sims, said it wasn’t easy closing branches but said some were visited by only two or three customers a day. No jobs would be lost through the closures, and the bank had begun recruiting more than 150 people to work across its phone, online and branch network, Sims said. Five of the branches closing are in Auckland, with branches also closing in Hamilton, Papamoa, Christchurch and Mosgiel. ‘‘Kiwis’ expectations of their bank are changing,’’ said Sims. ‘‘In the past five years for example, at ASB we’ve seen a 42 per cent decline in branch transactions, and now 85 per cent of our personal customers prefer the convenience of our online and mobile services.’’ He said since lockdown began in late March, around 13,500 customers had used the bank’s digital channels for the first time to do their banking and they were continuing to do so even though branches were open again. The branch closures and shift to limited days at other branches would be completed by August 3. ‘‘Making changes to our branches is never easy,’’ Sims said.