Bank / Credit Union

Credit Suisse closing 37 branches in streamlineing effort

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August 26, 2020

Swiss bank Credit Suisse plans to close 37 branches and cut jobs in its home country of Switzerland as part of an effort to streamline its business.

Credit Suisse expects to implement the changes by the end of this year and reduce the number of branches in Switzerland from 146 to 109, according to a press release.

The bank said there has been a 40% increase in online banking at Credit Suisse in the past two years, and use of its mobile banking app has more than doubled. Although the COVID-19 crisis accelerated the online banking trends the bank stated that physical visits to the branches have been falling off for the past few years.

The company said "a headcount reduction ... is inevitable" but didn't give any figures.

Credit Suisse forecast annual cost savings of about 100 million francs ($U.S. 110 million) starting in 2022.