Bank of Ireland will close 103 branches in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
From September, the branch network will reduce by 88, from 257 locations to 169. The branches closing are predominately self-service locations that do not offer a counter service.
In a statement, the firm said: "Accordingly, following an extensive review of our network, we have taken the decision to close 103 branches in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
"We will continue to operate 182 branches across the island of Ireland. The branches will be an integral part of the Group's strategy of blending physical and digital services to meet our customers' evolving needs."
Publishing its annual results for 2020, the bank added: "We have seen a sustained decline in the use of our branches. Our customers tell us that they expect visits to branches to reduce further as they move away from cash towards digital and contactless payments."
The bank said the changes were made as they adapt to the changes in preference by their customers. They also want to work towards a longterm, sustainable and modern banking system.
Francesca McDonagh, Group CEO of Bank of Ireland, said: “Technology is evolving, and customers are using branches less, year on year on year. COVID-19 has accelerated this changing behaviour, and we’ve seen a seismic shift towards digital banking over the past 12 months.
“We’ve now reached a tipping point between online and offline banking. Our mobile app is our most popular way to bank, with almost half a million customer logins every day and traffic up by a third in the past two years. 7 in 10 personal customer product applications are made digitally, and we expect this to grow to over 8 in 10 by the end
of this year.
"In contrast, the number of people visiting branches has sharply declined and is now just over half of what it was in 2017. Footfall at the branches which are closing is down even more, by c.60% since 2017."
The impact of Covid-19 has been cited as a large reason why they have accelerated a shift towards digital banking.
Despite the closures, the bank has agreed to a new arrangement with An Post to protect local services. Customers will now have access to a range of banking services at more than 900 locations.
The full list of the branches that will be closing is set to be published at 10am, once staff have been informed.
