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(Photo= Yonhap news) |
[Alpha Biz= Reporter Kim Minyoung] According to data submitted by the Financial Supervisory Service to Representative Kang Min-kook’s office on the 24th, a total of 14,426 ATMs have been withdrawn by banks over the past six years, from 2018 to June of this year.
A year-by-year breakdown shows 2,102 ATMs were removed in 2018, 2,318 in 2019, 2,770 in 2020, 2,506 in 2021, 2,424 in 2022, 1,646 in 2023, and 660 ATMs were removed in the first half of this year.
Banks cite maintenance costs, including ATM management and heating/cooling expenses, as the primary reasons for this significant reduction.
While the rise in mobile banking and the decline in cash usage make the reduction of ATMs seem natural, this trend, coupled with the closure of bank branches, inevitably reduces accessibility and convenience for the elderly and other financially vulnerable groups.
From 2018 to June this year, 1,003 bank branches were closed. The number of closures surpassed 200 annually from 2020 to 2022. However, the pace slowed to 97 closures in 2023 and 43 in the first half of this year.
The slowdown appears to be a response to the financial authorities’ "Bank Branch Closure Implementation Plan," introduced in 2023, which made the process of closing branches more stringent.
Among the banks, Shinhan Bank closed the most branches at 179, followed by Woori Bank with 161, and both KB Kookmin Bank and Hana Bank with 159 each.
AlphaBIZ Kim Minyoung(kimmy@alphabiz.co.kr)
