American banks filed to close 18 branches last week – and to open 8 – as part of an ongoing elimination of costly brick and mortar locations across the country. 

Midwest-based Associated Bank filed to close eight locations – five in Wisconsin and three in Illinois, according to a weekly bulletin published by regulator the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC).

Bank of America filed to close three branches between November 26 and December 2 – in Florida, Georgia and Pennsylvania.

Valley Bank had two locations on the chopping board, while First American Trust, JPMorgan Chase and US bank filed to shutter one branch each. 

It is the latest spate of planned closures amid an increasing move toward online banking – which leaves some Americans without access to vital services.

Associated Bank has more than 200 branches throughout Illinois, Minnesota and Wisconsin.

The bank filed to close eight branches – and did not reveal plans to open any. 

DailyMail.com approached Associated Bank for comment but did not immediately hear back. 

JP Morgan Chase and Bank of America, however, led in terms of branch openings, notifying the OCC of four and two respectively. 

Bank First and Citizens each said they planned on opening a single new branch.

Bank of America also filed to shutter seven branches in the week between November 19 and November 25, according to the OCC. 

The company had 5,400 branches in 2013 and around 3,800 this year, according to BankRegData.

A spokesperson for Bank of America told DailyMail.com that it was closing certain branches in response to diminishing customer traffic.

‘What we’re seeing across the industry is that our clients are using digital banking for more of their everyday needs. They only come into our financial centers when they want to have a conversation about their finances or something that’s a little more complex,’ they said.

As the habits of consumers are changing, so too are the way banks are set out, said the spokesperson.

In the past, Bank of America branches were arranged in such a way that the teller line was at the front. That line is now often at the back of the branch to make space for customers to meet with bank employees privately nearer to the entrance.

Although the majority of consumer banks have been closing branches in recent years, the extent of the downscaling could begin to level off, the spokesperson suggested.

Source