Bancography, a financial services consulting firm, today announced that its Bancology Winter 2024 Newsletter is now available for immediate download here. In its 23rd year of providing key industry insights, this edition presents deposit and branching trends and guidance for financial modeling for branch relocations.

The main themes include:

Findings from the 2024 FDIC and NCUA Deposit Statistics

Released in mid-October with data as of June 30, 2024, the combined FDIC and NCUA data demonstrates a stabilization in the banking industry for both deposit and branch levels. This article outlines deposit growth and branching activity across the U.S. overall and for specific markets. For example, at the MSA level, nine markets posted net gains of at least five branches: Jacksonville, Nashville, Providence, Charleston (SC), Fayetteville (AR), Boulder, Memphis, Sarasota and Omaha. Meanwhile the larger, long-established markets of New York, Washington, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Chicago experienced the greatest unit declines.

How to Evaluate Branch Relocations

Banks and credit unions relocate branches for a variety of reasons, including better market position, visibility and access, or an expiring lease. However, there are other reasons an institution should consider relocation; for example, reducing costs and operational challenges caused by an oversized branch that was designed for a prior, higher-transaction era of banking. In a relocation, any incremental costs must be offset by capturing a greater share of the same demand the branch already faced at its prior location. This article shows how bankers can use a deposit-offset calculation to provide a quantitative benchmark against which to frame branch relocation decisions.

Availability of The Brand Truth White Paper

An institution’s brand is one of the most valuable intangible assets available. One misstep could tarnish the image beyond recognition. A healthy and strong brand will survive miscues. Knowing where the brand stands versus the public’s perception is the key in successfully managing a brand. The white paper includes methods, best practices and case studies to help financial institutions evaluate and strengthen their brands. Download here.

Bancography Plan New Feature

Bancography Plan now offers a closure analysis function to forecast the potential impact ‒ in terms of account and balance runoff ‒ of possible branch closures. It forecasts the likelihood of retaining versus losing accounts based on distance to nearest surviving branch, and of the population density in that branch’s trade area. After importing a file of relevant accounts, Bancography Plan will generate a series of reports to assist bankers in projecting the impact of branch closure.

Steve Reider, Bancography’s president, says, “Even with the rise of electronic channels, ask any community bank or credit union executive what differentiates their institution, and they will say ‘the service we provide in the branch.’ The branch remains essential to successfully serving a community. This issue of Bancology further supports this principle and validates that branches are not going away; in fact, there were fewer net branch closings in the past year than in any of the prior 10 years. Our customers understand that branches can boost deposit growth and attract the next generation of customers, while building loyalty and engaging the community.”

Download a copy of the Bancology Winter 2024 Newsletter here. Bancography’s annual Outlook will be available in February 2025 and will explore deposit and branching trends at the national and market level in greater detail.

About Bancography

Bancography provides branch planning solutions and primary marketing research for financial institutions across the U.S. Bancography offers custom branch network optimization services in addition to Bancography Plan, our market analysis and branch planning software tool. Bancography’s Branch Network Optimization service provides a market-wide assessment of any region to deliver a long-term plan for branch openings, closings, relocations and acquisitions. Our branch planning projects have addressed every region in the U.S. In support of our clients’ current operations, Bancography performs primary marketing research to measure customer experience and brand awareness.

For more information, visit bancography.com, connect with us on LinkedIn or contact info@bancography.com.

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