With the closure of the Commonwealth Bank in Somerville, SBG has been fielding phone calls and enquiries about the needs for a bank in Somerville.
The common theme has been that CBA, NAB, ANZ and Westpac have all moved out of town, obviously not generating enough “profits” from the customers.
We spoke to CBA Somerville staff and they were not surprised by the decision to close the bank, citing that since Covid people have adapted and the branch itself is very quiet. They have also said that since NAB closed there was not a significant increase in new customers and that the only significant change was the increase in non CBA customers using CBA’s ATMs.
We contacted the Bendigo Bank Regional Community Bank manager and after initial research they have indicated that they are not interested in a “bricks and mortar” facility in town or even letting some space in another shop. BB Hastings seem keen to do something, but Mt.Eliza and Balnarring are interested also.
We contacted Bank of Queensland, but they too simply said no. Their Mornington branch is moving to Mt.Eliza and he indicated Bank of Melbourne Mornington is closing/ has closed. This leaves just CBA in Mornington.
So where does that leave us?
Last month at the SBG meeting representatives from BB Mt.Eliza outlined how they can help small business, commercial lending etc (contact us for more details).
The Post Office do operate a limited Commonwealth Bank deposits and withdrawals facility over the counter.
Woolworths also offer withdrawals without purchasing a product.
The huge gap will be retail outlets that require change for their business, we will continue to pursue this on business’ behalf and please contact us if you have any suggestions.
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