A US bank is now planning unexpected branch closures in one particular state due to a recent merger affecting overlapping locations.
Provident Bank, whose merger with in-state peer Lakeland Bancorp closed last month, has decided to shutter branches due to overlapping proximity, the lender announced recently.
Fresh off a merger with its in-state peer Lakeland Bancorp, Provident Financial Services announced it will close a total of 22 locations of overlapping branches in New Jersey — roughly 15% of its physical footprint — by the end of August.
“A careful and thorough review of our combined branch network was undertaken, and we have decided to close either a Provident branch or a Lakeland branch in cases where a single location can serve all of our customers,” Provident Bank said on its website while displaying a list of the branches to be shut down.
Affected customers, who were informed about the branches shutting down on May 29, can still access any of Provident’s 140 branches through its newly expanded network in New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania.
The $24.5 billion-asset bank notified the affected customers in advance and offered various channels and resources to support their transition, emphasizing that it is trying to minimize disruption, a spokesperson for Provident told Banking Dive via email.
“As we integrate the two banks, we have reviewed needs across the organization and have adjusted resources, which unfortunately has required us to reduce the size of certain teams.
We do not take these difficult decisions lightly, and we understand the significance and impact these decisions have on our team members as well as our customers,” Provident spokesperson said.
“Our priority remains providing an exceptional customer experience and adapting to the evolving preferences of our clients, whether through physical branches, online banking, or other innovative solutions,” the bank spokesperson noted.
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Also Read: A Massive US Bank is Now Closing Credit Cards
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A banker is now convicted for stealing money from customers while working at Bank of America over a 10-year period.
The personal banker was arrested after her years-long scam, resulting in nearly $300,000 being stolen, came to light.
Police in Seneca, South Carolina said they received a report in 2013 about missing money from an account with Bank of America.
The victim, who also reported the incident to the Customer Service department, told police he was missing around $30,000.
Investigators worked with Bank of America for several weeks after the crime was reported and learned that an employee who had been stealing money from several people in Oconee County.
The police said the victims would use the Bank of America location in Seneca as their primary bank and Bobbi Cortese was their personal banker.
Seneca Police investigators and the US Secret Service spent nearly a decade doing more interviews.
Meanwhile, Bank of America was given time to complete an internal investigation.
It was revealed that Cortese had stolen nearly $300,000 from four people while working at the bank.
Some of the money was in the victims’ bank accounts for life insurance payouts related to the deaths of their spouses.
Others had a lifetime of earnings that was supposed to be used for their retirement, said police.
Cortese would open accounts under the victims’ names without their knowledge or consent and would perform a “shell game.”
This is when a scammer uses the money from one victim to replace what she stole from another victim.
After investigating further, police said Cortese forged several documents and issued them to the victims to hide the theft.
She committed these acts for about four years while working at the Bank of America, said police.
Cortese was arrested in May 2023 and charged with four counts of breach of trust and two counts of forgery.
She was later fired by the bank, reports The-Sun.
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Also Read: A Massive Bank Now Freezes Money From Direct Deposits
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