HSBC has closed more than a quarter of its UK branches over the last two years. The bank is estimated to have closed around 1000 branches so far. Consumer research firm Which? said the bank closed 321 branches since January 2015, or 27% of its network. Other banks too have closed branches as more and more people depend on online and digital banking, Which? said. Cooperative Bank has closed more than half of its branches over the same period and Lloyds has said it plans to speed up its closure program in 2017, closing about 200 branches. Which? said the areas most affected by closures – South West England, Wales and Scotland – are predominantly rural and often with unreliable connectivity.
