Postbank Reduces Number of Branches and Opens Advisory Centers

Financial Matters - Postbank Reduces Number of Branches and Opens Advisory Centers

Deutsche Bank will partially compensate for closing Postbank branches through the introduction of regional advisory centers. Customers can learn about financial matters via phone or video conference outside of business hours and on weekends at these centers. The head of Deutsche Bank's private customer bank in Germany, Lars Stoy, told the German Press Agency in Frankfurt that Postbank aims to move away from a branch-centric model to one where customers can pick their preferred channels.

For many years, Deutsche Bank has maintained advisory centers. These will be joined by Postbank team members at nine locations: Hamburg, Berlin, Essen, Schkeuditz, Wuppertal, Mainz, Mannheim, Nuremberg, and Munich. In addition, two new purely Postbank advisory centers are slated for Hanover and Bonn. The bank plans to have all 11 Postbank advisory centers up and running for customers by 2025.

Fewer Postbank Branches

To reduce the number of Postbank branches, Deutsche Bank will cut them down to 320 by mid-2026, from the current 550. In 200 of the remaining locations, postal services will be offered as well, while 120 are standalone bank branches. "We have made sure to be well represented in metropolitan areas and the country," said Dominik Hennen, who manages the private customer businesses of Deutsche Bank and Postbank. "This won't be possible everywhere, but we have made sure that we also have good coverage of the country."

Hennen acknowledged that there would be a "reduction in staff" but declined to provide specific numbers. Employees from closed branches will be hired by the bank to work at the advisory centers. The bank will not implement job cuts before the end of 2027, per the latest collective bargaining agreement with union Verdi.

Streamlining Real Estate Financing

Deutsche Bank's management has also agreed with its works councils to simplify its real estate financing structure. Stoy explained that the bank has amalgamated various units over the years, resulting in a complex real estate financing world with three processes, three different staff groups, and three processing models. "We're now consolidating this," said Stoy.

Previously, Deutsche Bank operated decentrally at about a double-digit number of locations, while the BHW operated in a single location - its central office in Hameln, and the DSL had 13 branches. "This will now be condensed into six primary locations, each with subsidiary locations, resulting in a total of approximately 13 locations," added Stoy.

Read also:

1. Deutsche Bank will compensate for closing Postbank branches in Frankfurt by introducing regional advisory centers, as mentioned by Lars Stoy to the German Press Agency.
2. Postbank aims to move away from a branch-centric model and instead offer customers multiple channels, including advisory centers, according to Stoy.
3. Deutsche Bank will introduce regional advisory centers at nine locations across Germany, including Hamburg, Berlin, and Munich.
4. Two new advisory centers will be opened in Hanover and Bonn strictly for Postbank, as part of the bank's expansion plan.
5. By 2025, Deutsche Bank aims to have all 11 Postbank advisory centers operational for customers in Germany.
6. To reduce the number of Postbank branches, Deutsche Bank will close down 230 branches by mid-2026, leaving 320 branches in total.
7. Postal services will be offered at 200 of the remaining Postbank branches, while 120 will operate as standalone bank branches.
8. Dominik Hennen, who manages Deutsche Bank's private customer businesses, maintains that the bank offers good coverage of metropolitan areas and the country.
9. While acknowledging a staff reduction, Hennen declined to provide specific numbers and assured that Deutsche Bank will not implement any job cuts before 2027.
10. Employees from closed Postbank branches will be hired by the bank to work at the advisory centers, as part of a plan to retain talent.
11. Stoy further stated that Deutsche Bank aims to streamline its real estate financing structure, consolidating various units into six primary locations and approximately 13 locations in total.

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