Virgin Money delays branch closures in face of coronavirus
Challenger bank Virgin Money is reviewing plans to close branches as lenders focus on mitigating the impact of the coronavirus.
Hundreds of jobs earmarked for redundancy could also now be put on hold as the bank pauses branch closure plans, according to the Sunday Telegraph.
Read more: Lloyds suspends 780 planned job cuts amid coronavirus uncertainty
Virgin Money unveiled plans to cut 500 jobs last month as part of its integration with Clydesdale and Yorkshire Banking Group (CYBG). It also said it will shutter 22 branches this year and 30 more will be “consolidating” into another CYBG or Virgin Money location.
Banks have been cutting costs and closing branches as people pivot to banking online.
It comes days after Lloyds announced it was suspending 780 job cuts across its branches last week.
Sign up to City PM’s Midday Update newsletter, delivered to your inbox every lunchtime
The cuts were originally announced in February as part of a cost-cutting drive by the bank, which is working to shrink its branch network in response to declining demand for high street banking.
“At this uncertain time, we have made the decision to stop the structural changes that were due to take place for some of our teams. Our focus is on supporting our customers and colleagues during this unprecedented time,” a Lloyds spokesperson said.
Last week the Bank of England told banks and building societies to keep branches open wherever possible after the government ordered the closure of non-essential businesses.
HSBC told employees last week it would delay the “vast majority” of its redundancies, according to a memo seen by Reuters.
Chief executive Noel Quinn, who was confirmed in the top job this month, had previously planned to cut around 35,000 as part of a strategic overhaul.