U.S. banks' branch closings continued to outpace branch openings in July with 129 closings and 52 openings.
The net closures in July were 77, a decrease from 90 in June and notably lower than the trailing-12-month average of 260 net closures monthly, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence data.
Branch net closings declined significantly to 312 in the second quarter from 950 in the first quarter and 822 in the 2021 second quarter, a Market Intelligence analysis of banks that opened or closed branches between Jan. 1, 2020, and June 30, 2022, showed. The slowdown came as banks realized the need to strike a balance between pushing for digital channels and maintaining a physical footprint to compete.
As of July 31, the total number of active bank branches was 79,397. Since the start of August 2021, banks have closed 3,114 branches and opened 964.
BofA tops the list
Bank of America Corp. was the largest net closer of branches in July with 30 closings and two openings. Over the last 12 months, the company has shuttered 370 branches and opened 41.
BofA continues adding branches in cities and towns where it "didn't have the brand structure" and repositioned in other locations, Chairman and CEO Brian Moynihan said on the company's second-quarter earnings call.
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Wells Fargo & Co. was the second-largest net closer as it closed 15 branches without openings. The company has shut down 229 locations and opened 11 over the last 12 months.
The most active net opener in July was Franklin Financial Services Corp. with two openings and no closings.
Closures by geography
Similar to the previous month, the mid-Atlantic region saw the most net closures at 28. The West region ranked second with 20 net closures.
The Southeast region, where 271 and 154 net closures took place in February and March, respectively, only recorded 19 net closures in July.
