Bank of Africa (BOA) today announced that it plans to digitize most of its services in a move that will leave only 30 branches across the country and hundreds of employees without jobs. Nairobi County, which has the most branches, will now have 17, down from the current 25.
The other 13 will be distributed throughout other parts of Kenya. Consequently, there will be staff cuts along with the move although it wasn’t immediately clear how many would be affected. BOA becomes the latest lender to close traditional brick and mortar outlets to focus on pushing services through digital channels.
Equity Bank announced in October that it was freezing branch expansion to move away from the traditional across-the-counter branches to online platforms. Diamond Trust Bank and Ecobank have also made similar moves, underlining the impact of technology that is bringing an end to the days when interaction your lender meant spending time in banking halls.
New channels such as mobile banking, agents and online banking have also made basic functions such as withdrawals, deposits, payment of bills, loan applications and fund transfers easier for customers.
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