DTB to close six branches by end of October 2021

Tier I lender Diamond Trust Bank (DTB) is expected to shut six branches by the end of October as part of efforts to consolidate its physical footprint.

In a notice issued on Friday, the lender said it had received approval from the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) to consolidate its branches.

“The DTB branch consolidation will affect locations where branches identified for merger are co-located or in close proximity to each other. The affected branches will cease operations with immediate effect,” DTB stated.

Among the branches set for closure include the Jamuhuri Street branch in Malindi, two in Westlands (the Oval & 9West), Kago Street branch in Eldoret, Garden City Mall and the Eastleigh branch.

The branches will be merged into five existing outlets including the Malindi Branch, Westgate Mall, Eldoret Branch, Thika Road Mall and Madina Mall.

DTB’s branch consolidation mirrors and industry wide trend as lenders turn to alternative banking channels for service provision.

In the last year for instance NCBA, Standard Chartered and SBM were among the list of banks to consolidate their branch count in a drive for operational efficiency.

According to CBK’s Bank Supervision Report covering 2019, the number of bank branches decreased from 1505 in 2018 to 1490 in 2020 with Nairobi County seeing the highest branch closures at eight.

“The decrease in physical bank branches was mainly attributed to the adoption of alternative delivery channels such as mobile phone banking, internet and agency banking,” said the CBK.

The COVID-19 pandemic has meanwhile accelerated the drive to consolidate branches with 9 out of every 10 banking related transactions taking place outside the branch as of June last year.