Barclays Bank Branches to close

New style Bank coming from Virgin

Barclays customers hava been notified that their Pontardawe and Ystradgynlais branches will be closing in October of this year.

A business owner at Pontardawe said he will now have to bank his daily takings at the Post Office.   Barclays are strongly promoting Internet banking as an alternative to face to face transactions at the Bank.

This is in contrast to Virgin Money who are planning to open highstreet 'shops' to fill the void.    The so called shops will be informal places where customers can have a cup of coffee while talking to a Virgin Money representative.

There are also changes at Lloyds Bank where their Private Banking facility returns from Bristol to Swansea's Enterpise Park where it was a few years ago.   The Private Banking facility looks after customers investments on a commission basis.