Banks still investing billions in branches despite years of closures
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Illustration: Gabriella Turrisi/Axios
New bank branches opening in Nashville and around the country reflect a sea change that is reshaping the look and feel of modern banking.
Why it matters: Cashing checks and other tasks that used to dominate branch business have become digital errands, but brick-and-mortar branches are still a critical link between customers and banks.
Case in point: Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan visited a new branch in downtown Nashville last year and discussed the evolving nature of his company's physical footprint.
Zoom in: While old-school branches featured marble, dark wood and a long line of tellers, the downtown Nashville branch is filled with breakout offices that can host lengthier conversations with customers who have "more life-centered questions" about mortgages and estate planning.
What he's saying: "These branches now look a lot different than they would have looked ... 50 years ago," Moynihan told reporters.
- "What happened was the transactional side of the branches went down and the relation side of the branches went up."
The big picture: Banks have been steadily closing branches for more than a decade as mobile banking has surged.
- The number of branches per American has fallen by nearly 30% since peaking in 2009, per federal data.
Yes, but: Major banks are still spending billions to update and expand their branch networks to meet customers' new needs.
State of play: JPMorgan Chase said last week it will open more than 160 new U.S. branches in 30+ states in 2026 and renovate another 600 as part of a multibillion-dollar investment, Axios' Nathan Bomey reports.
- Bank of America is also growing, with plans to open more than 150 branches, or "financial centers," across 60 markets by the end of next year. Existing branches have gotten significant makeovers.
Between the lines: Moynihan said the previous branch model sought to "simplify the what went on at the financial centers and take out all the complexity.
- "It's actually completely reversed now. So you want to drive the people branches when they have things that they need a human being to help on."
The bottom line: Research suggests that physical banks still matter to customers, even as they do more of their banking online.
- 64% of customers "still rely on branches for conflict resolution when they can't find a way to resolve an issue online," a 2025 Accenture study found.
- Plus, 65% "still see branches as symbols of stability, a sentiment that spans generations," according to the study.