A senate inquiry into bank closures in regional Australia has revealed shortfalls in banks’ decision-making leading to the branch shutdown, including the lack of consultation with the local community and the inadequacy in ground knowledge of senior decision-makers.
The inquiry, which Senator Matt Canavan oversees, held public hearings on May 17 and 18 in regional Queensland, focusing on the branch closure process and its impact on local communities. Canavan chairs the Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport References Committee overseeing the inquiry.
More than 300 bank branches closed across Australia in the last financial year, with 95 of those in regional areas. The last five years have seen regional bank branches reduce by 29 percent, or a net decline of 677 branches, according to the banking regulator APRA….