Regional bank closures: Alexandra NAB branch to shut on May 4

NAB is pressing ahead with more regional bank closures across Victoria as the Senate inquiry into them shutting gathers momentum.

A community leader in Alexandra says the big four banks “don’t get country life” as the town’s last remaining bank will close shortly.

Stock and station agent Andrew Embling said the NAB bank would close on May 4 despite a Senate inquiry into an acceleration of bush banks shutting their doors only starting last week.

The committee conducting the inquiry requested closures be put on hold, but NAB banks in Alexandra, Maffra and Geelong are still shutting.

Alexandra stock and station agent Andrew Embling.

Mr Embling said attention had turned to opening a community bank to ensure residents still had face-to-face banking services.

“The majority of the big four banks just don’t get country life,” he said.

“We’ve got a lot of older farmers who still run cheque books and wouldn’t know how to do internet banking.

“They buy 20 head of cattle and still write a cheque.

“This transition to a cashless society in the bush is going to take a long time.”

Residents feared the Alexandra NAB bank was destined to close when opening hours were first cut.

ANZ was the first to shut in Alexandra followed by the Commonwealth.

NAB retail executive Krissie Jones, who appeared at the inquiry last week, said there had been a 66 per cent reduction in foot traffic into local branches nationally.

Senator Matt Canavan is chairing the Senate Inquiry into regional bank closures with a public hearing held in Sale last week.

According to NAB, 46 per cent of its Alexandra customers had only visited the branch once in the last year.

Alexandra resident Peter Rice said the NAB closure had “left the community in shock”.

“I’ve lived here all my life and the town’s population has increased significantly over the last five years, yet the services and number of shops are diminished,” he said.

“It doesn’t really make sense.”

Graham and Lyn Clifford live at nearby Thornton and travel an hour to Healesville for face-to-face banking.

“We were going to change to NAB, but all of a sudden they went to five half days a week,” she said.

“I can do some banking online, but my husband can’t.

“It absolutely devastated us when the Commonwealth closed.

“We’d had money taken out of our account and the only way we got it back was contacting the bank here and they were absolutely marvellous.”