I don’t know how it is in other countries, but here in Australia there is a general uproar over the closure of a lot of bank branches, especially in rural areas. It is not limited to just one bank, either, all of the banks have come under fire for branch closures. While the case is probably very different in more remote areas, living in the city I don’t actually have a problem with not having bank branches.

Personally, I hardly ever have the need to go into a bank branch. The last time I found myself in a bank was to sign the papers for my car loan over a year and a half ago. ATMs and EFTPOS serve me very well for withdrawals and deposits, and I use internet banking for bill payments and other monetary transfer needs. I would be more than happy to have lower bank fees in exchange for not having a branch nearby to go to.

ING have its ING Direct banking service here, wherein there are no branches and all transactions to and from the account are electronic, but it is only for savings accounts - no ATM card. I think there could be a market for a purely electronic banking account, but so far I have not seen it from any of the banks here. I don’t know what the situation in other countries is, but I really wish someone would capitalize on it in Australia.

I guess there will always be the need for bank branches, mainly for business banking and for people in more remote locations, but for my needs I would be more than happy to have an electronic-only account.