Nice catchy headline here from Silicon.com but in the small print they make the real point that while locations are important, it is even more a priority critical to re-invent the operation of those locations, as well as getting the right balance of branch footprint.

Internet can’t kill bank branch, says Halifax – Financial Services – Breaking Business and Technology News at silicon.com

Rumours of the death of the bank branch at the hands of internet banking have been “greatly exaggerated”, according to Halifax.

They make the key point here.  The linked article goes on to talk about some future technologies in the branch of the future.  Its worth understanding why this is required, because that helps us define which technology solutions are required.  Refer to background piece below on the changes in the banking channel environment over the last 5 years..

But, as around half of a bank’s customers will visit the branch at least once per month, some banks are also investing heavily in new technology in their branches to improve customer service.

Continue reading “Rumours of death of the branch have been greatly exaggerated (Halifax)”

HBOS employ branch footprint increase to address market share.  At £1 million per branch, these must be pretty spiffy branches they are considering here. Banking, finance, insurance The Times Times Online Sunday Times HBOS, Britain’s fourth-biggest bank, yesterday pledged to spend £100 million opening 100 Halifax branches over the next five years in the South of England, as part of its drive to increase its market share. The group said that the move, which represents the biggest network expansion by the Halifax since the 1970s, creating an estimated 1,500 jobs, would help it to achieve its target market share of … Continue reading HBOS to spend £100m on new branch openings (over 5 years)

Article from Mapinfo, on the BAI blog, discussing the the science of branch location selection. It reads more as an ad than anything else, but some good tips in there. I say ad, because it doesn’t address “why” branches and their location are important.

Banking Strategies Blog : The Laws of Customer Attraction

BY LYNN ELLEN QUEEN MAPINFO CORP.Relying on more “science” in branch location decisions can yield sharper analyses of (customer) demand and (branch) supply, minimizing costly mistakes.

| SYNOPSIS | A new branch office can cost $1 million to $3 million, reflecting premium pricing during this spike in de novo branching. Banks are encouraged to employ a more sophisticated analysis – one that includes more granular levels of detail – to choose the sites most appropriate for their overall retail strategy.

Identifying locations for new branches has always been part science, part art. Bankers over the years have developed many models for analyzing the demographics of a particular area. The models are then supplemented with local market knowledge or “gut instinct,” i.e., does this strip center or corner parcel feel right?

Continue reading “Vendor article on the science of branch location: “The Laws of Customer Attraction””

This article from Financetech is well worth the read.  I find this quote incredible “Manuel Barbero, BearingPoint: SOA enables faster, cheaper application integration. It exists thanks to the adoption of Web-related technologies and constructs that make applications talk to one another in a standardized manner”. Faster & cheaper?  I would like to know the bank that is seeing that result.  No question its the right thing, but its a slow painstaking process, as the costs of development are continually held up against the requirement for revenue.  This is consultantspeak at its worst. The emergence of service-oriented architecture and grid computing … Continue reading Faster & cheaper – huh!