With All of the New Found Technology, Are Bank Branches Becoming a Thing of the Past?

Are bank branches becoming a thing of the past? With all of the technology resources at our fingertips, in the future, doing banking in person will be obsolete. Remember the days when you had to use your lunch break just to get your banking done? Those days are quickly becoming a thing of the past.

Banks shut some 1,407 branches in 2014, a near record and a trend that is likely to continue, according to SNL Financial. We have ways to deposit checks by taking a picture, and you can transfer money with the touch of a button, and not just within your own account; you can transfer money half way across the world with one click of your smart phone.  You can do live video chats with a remote human now and that is starting to impact customers interfacing with with bank (or banks).   The shift to depositing checks via your cell phone is well underway; not to mention the continued trend to more use of mobile-payment systems such as Apple Pay.

Why would we prefer to go to the bank in person? We can get the same job done from the comfort of our home, or on the go, and it fits perfectly into most people’s on the go lifestyle. For those that are still doing banking at branches, they will see a new face at the window in the future. There is talk of replacing human contact with avatars. This replacement will definitely change the face of banking.

One day bank branches every couple of blocks will indeed be a thing of the past. Unfortunately people are no longer concerned with human contact. We all live very fast paced lives, and the new technology makes banking much more convenient. Technology and ATMs has made it possible to have all of your banking needs met without spending all of your time waiting in line.

The question is what Bank services will foster the desire for a human interaction in the future,  and how is that shifting over what time frame.

Add your comments below.  What do you see happening and when?