Yesterday, it was announced that Halifax in Aberystwyth and Lloyds bank in Cardigan will be closing their branches this summer.
Despite the Lloyds Group saying that they won’t be leaving our communities entirely, and that there will be access to some services through the community banker, losing more of our high street branches, not long after Barclays also declared that they are closing their Cardigan and Aberystwyth branches is a big hit for our two main towns in Ceredigion.
Elin Jones MS said: “It’s so disappointing to hear the news that both Cardigan and Aberystwyth will be losing another of their main high street banks. Even though we can appreciate that for many of us banking now is done on our phones or online, there is still a portion of our society who rely completely on face-to-face banking on the high street. It’s awful to think that we’re in such a situation, and hopefully something will come from the discussions that are happening on creating community banking hubs.”
Ben Lake MP said: "Despite the fact that we read just last month of the UK banking sector reporting record annual profits for 2023, it is clear that they remain intent on reducing their branch network. I had already arranged to meet with representatives of the Financial Conduct Authority and LINK following the decision by Barclays to close its Ceredigion branches, and so I shall now also have to raise these further closures.
“It is clear that the regulatory framework determining the establishment of banking hubs needs to change at pace to ensure that Ceredigion is not left without access to banking services. I have already joined forces with other MPs to meet with the regulator to press for an expansion of the eligibility criteria so that banking hubs can be established in a broader range of towns. Yesterday’s announcement has added yet further urgency to this work.”
Showing 1 reaction