Survey says … bank branches are back

Bank Director magazine has released the results of its latest technology-focused survey of banking industry senior executives. The findings, to a certain extent, fly in the face of prevailing wisdom that says brick-and-mortar bank branches are a thing of the past.

Of the more than 160 U.S. executives surveyed, more than half — 54% — say their bank will build more branches. The majority of those respondents, though, say new branches will be smaller than current branches. Only 1% of respondents say they’ll build more branches that will be bigger than their current offices. Nearly one in 10, 9% say their strategy involves branch closures.