CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Credit unions could have the opportunity to snatch up Bank of America branches, now that the banking giant could be cutting up to 10% of its branching network over the next few years.
The Wall Street Journal recently reported that CEO Ken Lewis told investors the megabank's 6,100 branch network would be reduced by 10%, a major pullback from an expansion that has lasted for the past 20 years. Other media outlets later confirmed that the company plans to shutter some branches over the next three to five years but disputed the 10% figure, saying that it had not yet determined how many would be closed or where the closures would take place.
The banking giant, which holds more than 12% of all American deposits, is consolidating its physical footprint as online and mobile banking becomes more popular with its customers. While Bank of America consolidates, its biggest competitors will continue with their existing plans, the WSJ reported as Wells Fargo will not be cutting any of its 6,668 branches and JPMorgan Chase said it will keep adding about 100-125 locations every year to its 5,100 branch network.
Bank of America has grown substantially in the past decade, as it had about 4,700 branches prior to its purchase of BankAmerica in 1998. The behemoth added FleetBoston Financial in 2004 and LaSalle Bank in 2007 to boost those numbers to the current total of 6,109.
