U.S. Bancorp is closing 21 branches in the Chicago area as part of a restructuring plan to expand its physical footprint in some markets while shrinking its presence in others, bank spokesman Evan Lapiska confirmed.
The Minneapolis-based regional bank currently has more than 3,000 bank branches in 26 states, but it is looking to reduce its net number of brick-and-mortar locations by 10% to 15% over the next two years. Meanwhile, the bank is looking to expand in areas like the Southeast and Texas with a “branch-lite, digital-first” strategy, which involves placing a small number of branches in select markets.
Lapiska provided the following statement from U.S. Bank on the closures:
“Customers’ preferences and behaviors are changing, including a rapid migration toward digital and mobile banking platforms and a desire for greater simplicity. As we evolve along with our customers, we are reevaluating our physical footprint and, in some instances, consolidating a limited number of branch locations in select markets. The same process will result in reinvestment in core retail banking markets in the form of new, relocated or redesigned physical locations by the end of 2020.”
Coming off the launch of a revamped mobile app and the hiring of the bank’s first chief digital officer, U.S. Bank executives outlined a digital-heavy strategy to extend relationships with customers outside the bank’s physical footprint during its first quarter earnings call in April. “Digital engagement with our customers is growing,” Andy Cecere, chairman, president and CEO of U.S. Bank, said on the call.
Of the bank’s total active consumer banking customers, 71% were digitally active as of 1Q19, meaning they are interacting with the bank through online and/or mobile platforms. That was up from 66% in 2017. Digital transactions, meanwhile, accounted for 67% of all transactions at U.S. Bank in the first quarter, up from 63% in 2017. Additionally, nearly a third of all loan sales were digital as of the first quarter, up from 25% in 2018.
Also see: U.S. Bank Reaching Beyond Branches as 71% of Active Customers Are Now Digital
U.S. Bank is far from the only bank reconsidering its branch strategy. JPMorgan Chase & Co. in March announced that it expects to open 90 branches by the end of 2019 in cities such as Charlotte, Minneapolis and Nashville, even as it closes branches elsewhere. CEO Jamie Dimon said at a February conference that JPMorgan’s “biggest opportunity” is its wealthy customers and that the bank had captured just 1% of the market catering to customers with at least $250,000 in assets.
In 2018, a net decrease of 1,947 U.S. bank branches topped net decreases of 1,919 in 2017 and 1,843 in 2016, according to a recent report from S&P Global Market Intelligence. Leading the pack with 293 net branch closures in 2018 was Wells Fargo & Co., although it still had the most branches among U.S. banks with 5,671 active locations remaining as of Dec. 31, 2018. JPMorgan, which closed a net of 115 branches in 2018, was nearly 600 branches behind Wells Fargo at 5,095 branches. U.S. Bank closed a net of 76 branches last year for an end-of-year count of 3,084.






