ANOTHER sorry chapter in a shameful story.
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That's how federal Member for Calare Andrew Gee has described the closure of bank branches at Oberon and Lithgow that, he says, will force some customers to make long return trips to Bathurst.
NAB announced in January 2024 that Lithgow and Oberon would be two of 11 branches to be closed in the current financial year.
The Oberon branch's last day was Tuesday, April 23, while the Lithgow branch closed its doors the next day.
Mr Gee believes financial factors weren't the reason for the decision.
"In November 2023, NAB posted a profit of $7.731 billion," the Calare MP said.
"Former NAB CEO Ross McEwan said at the time, 'NAB is focused on delivering better outcomes for our customers and colleagues ... and this is serving our customers and our bank well.'
"I think he mistook the word 'customers' for 'shareholders', because just two months later, NAB announced it would be axing its Oberon and Lithgow shopfronts - two of 11 regional NAB branches to close by July."
Earlier this year, NAB's retail customer executive for greater regional NSW Allison Baker said the bank had "made the difficult decision to close the NAB branches in Lithgow and Oberon because fewer customers are using these for their banking".
"While we understand the community will be disappointed, this decision was made after looking closely at the number of customers using these branches and the increased use of digital banking in these areas," she said at the time.
"Just as they're using online government services to complete their tax or a Medicare claim, locals in Lithgow and Oberon are increasingly choosing to bank digitally because it's more convenient.
"Today, more than 93 per cent of transactions in Australia are taking place online, and this is increasing."
Mr Gee, meanwhile, said the closed branches will particularly affect seniors.
"To access face-to-face banking, NAB customers in Oberon will now be forced to complete a 90km to 100km round trip to Bathurst, while NAB customers in Lithgow must make an approximately 80km to 90km round trip to the Katoomba branch, or head to Bathurst, which is a round trip of about 125km," he said.
"These bank closures are particularly hard on seniors, community groups and businesses who rely on in-person banking services."
Mr Gee said he had a meeting with NAB in a bid to have the closures reconsidered, but he was unsuccessful.
"In February, I met with NAB representatives at Parliament House in Canberra and asked them to reverse their decision to axe their Lithgow and Oberon branches. They flat out refused," he said.
"This is another sorry chapter in the shameful story of the big banks' abandonment and betrayal of country Australia and their customers."
Reidun Berntsen
Reidun is a Journalist and writer who lives in a country town 3 hours from Sydney, Australia. From a young age, Reidun has been in love with words and the infinite possibilities they bring. Stories, features and poems have been a major part of her writing career.
Reidun is a Journalist and writer who lives in a country town 3 hours from Sydney, Australia. From a young age, Reidun has been in love with words and the infinite possibilities they bring. Stories, features and poems have been a major part of her writing career.
