The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
State losing bank branches at more than twice the national rate
Connecticut is losing bank branches at a faster rate than the rest of the country.
And while customers are using online and mobile apps more and more to do their banking business, at least one industry analyst doesn’t see physical locations disappearing entirely.
Over the last decade, the number of bank branches in the state has dropped by 201 locations, for an overall closure rate of 16 percent, according to John Carusone, president of the Bank Analysis Center, a Hartford-based industry consulting firm. The national closure rate over the same period was 6 percent, Carusone said.
“Connecticut is a fiercely, fiercely competitive banking market,” he said. “There is just no room for any branches that can’t pull their own weight.”
Historically speaking, he said, Connecticut has been “over-branched and overbanked.”
At one point during the 1980s, there were 125 banks and financial institutions doing business in Connecticut, according to Carusone. Now, there are 56, he said.
“Connecticut still has roughly 25 percent more branches per household — or, alternatively, 25 percent fewer households per branch — than the U.S. as a whole,” Carusone said. “In other words, the Nutmeg State can still be said to be
arguably more ‘overbranched’ than the rest of the country.”
Branch closings have come into sharper focus of late because some of the state’s largest banks have announced closures over the past several months.
In late December 2020, Webster Bank announced it was closing 16 branches in the state, including offices in Cheshire, Bethany and Hamden.
Kelly Raskauskas, a spokeswoman for the Waterbury-based bank, said Webster’s branches will close in phases to minimize disruption to customers, beginning in March and continuing through May.
“With the realignment of our customers and clients to nearby banking centers, the bankers currently staffing the identified locations will transition to other centers within the Webster network,” Raskauskas said.
Another large, Connecticut-based bank, People’s United, followed suit in January, announcing it would close most of its supermarket branches in Connecticut and New York.
Bridgeport-based People’s United has 84 branches located in Stop & Shop locations in Connecticut and 56 in New York. Officials with People’s United said they will not begin the supermarket branch closings until 2022.
Sara Longobardi, senior executive president in charge of retail banking with People’s United, said at the time that it was expected supermarket branch employees would be able to move into jobs at traditional locations nearby or transition into other roles within the company.
“We feel confident that there will be minimal job impact as a result of closing the in-store branches over the long-term,” Longobardi said.
Earlier this month, TD Bank announced it was closing six branches in Connecticut, including offices in West Haven and Woodbridge. Paige Wilkins, a TD Bank spokeswoman, said the goal is “to deliver an optimal mix of convenient ... locations and digital banking products and services that are second to none.”
“With those goals in mind, we regularly evaluate our existing TD Bank stores and new locations,” Wilkins said. “In reaching a decision to close specific TD Bank stores, we consider many business factors, including the number of customers visiting our stores, transaction volumes, the location’s proximity to other TD Bank stores and the number of customers who use multiple store locations.”
Raskauskas said Webster officials have seen customer preference for digital and mobile banking increase.
“Though this trend started well before the pandemic, its evolution has certainly been accelerated by COVID-19,” she said. “We’ve made investments in our digital banking channels to help customers with more online services.”
Many Connecticut consumers seemed comfortable with online banking and using mobile apps.
Neil Hutchins, a certified service dog trainer from Bethel, said he does 100 percent of his banking via a mobile app.
“It’s easy to use and I can keep track regularly,” Hutchins said when asked why he prefers using mobile banking. “Notifications are amazing. Also, as a service. I require ePayments and it makes transfers really simple.”
James Bulger of Cheshire said he uses Ion Bank’s mobile phone app to pay his bills.
“Once I loaded all the information for the bills and the account info, it’s seamless,” Bulger said. “I like it .”
Richard Riedel of Monroe said he has been doing online banking for 20 years.
“It has been very good for me as I don’t have to waste checks and stamps,” Riedel said. “My visits to a bank have dwindled down to a handful a year. I have never had a problem and it’s great when traveling.”
Jeff Natale of Cheshire said he refinanced his mortgage this week without having to go into a bank branch.
“Everything was done over the phone and through the bank’s mortgage portal,” Natale said. “I have not been in the local branch since February 2020 and that visit was only due to the ATM being serviced.”
Still, Carusone said he doesn’t expect that branch offices ever will completely go out of style.
“There are some things, like making investments and managing your money, that I think people want to do face-to-face,” he said. “And there are always going to be niche opportunities for banks looking to expand into another market.”
An example of one such niche opportunity, according to Carusone, is Guilford Savings Bank opening a new branch in North Haven at the intersection of Washington and Blakeslee avenues.
The branch, which is expected to open March 1, is the bank’s first location beyond its traditional Shoreline market. Guilford Savings has six branches: 2 in Guilford, 2 in Madison, and single locations in Branford and Old Saybrook.