Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC (LON:RBS) is to shut a further 54 branches in England and Wales and cut 258 jobs as part of its strategy to focus on online banking.
The lender said it would be the final cut to its branch network until at least 2020.
READ: Lloyds to close 49 branches, cut 305 jobs in UK
RBS and other UK banks have been closing branches in response to an increasing number of customers switching to digital and telephone banking.
In April Lloyds Banking Group PLC (LON:LLOY) announced that it would close 49 branches in addition to the 49 confirmed late last year.
Barclays PLC (LON:BARC) has closed more than 121 branches since August 2016 while HSBC Holdings PLC (LON:HSBC) axed 222 branches in 2016.
The latest branch closures for RBS come on top of the 421 it has said it would shut since this time last year.
Consumer group Which? said in June that a total of 2,868 bank branches will have closed between 2015 and the end of 2018, adding that RBS is shutting the most.
RBS closures relate to Williams & Glyn cull
RBS said the latest closures are related to the bank’s failed attempt to spin-out its Williams & Glyn brand into a stand-alone bank.
READ: RBS to close 162 branches as part of Williams & Glyn cull
“As we are no longer launching Williams & Glyn as a challenger bank we now have two branch networks operating in close proximity to each other in England and Wales,” an RBS spokesman said in a statement.
The spokesman said the bank will invest in the remaining branches.
Criticism over branch closures
Lenders have come under fire from unions, lawmakers and members of the public over the decision to close branches due to job losses and a reduction in local banking services.
RBS halted plans to shut 10 branches in Scotland due to political pressure and has ruled out further closures in the nation before 2020.
The Unite union said the latest branch cuts by RBS in England and Wales would leave just 51 sites.
“It is utterly disgusting that Royal Bank of Scotland has the audacity to announce that yet more important local bank branches will permanently close their doors,” Unite national officer Rob MacGregor said in a statement.