Deutsche Bank announces branch closures at Postbank - financial expert criticizes the move as sheer mockery for customers.

Deutsche Bank announces branch closures at Postbank - financial expert criticizes the move as sheer mockery for customers.

According to a report by www.saechsische.de, the head of the Federal Association of Consumer Advice Centers, Ramona Pop, sharply criticized the planned large-scale branch reductions at Postbank. The news that almost half of the branches are about to close right now sounds like “sheer mockery” for Postbank’s customers, Pop told the newspapers of the Funke media group. Deutsche Bank plans to close up to 250 of the current 550 Postbank branches at its Postbank subsidiary over the next two years.

Postbank and the construction finance provider DSL-Bank had significant problems with the IT migration to Deutsche Bank. Data from around twelve million Postbank customers was switched to Deutsche Bank's IT systems, leading to problems with online banking and difficult to reach customer service. Consumer advocates reported last week that complaints from those affected were continuing. Since the beginning of the year, there have been around 1,700 complaints from Postbank and DSL Bank customers, almost three times as many as in the entire previous year.

The planned branch reductions could further impact customer satisfaction as the closure of branches could lead to limited accessibility and reduced customer service. Additionally, the market-wide shift toward digitalization could disadvantage those who have less experience with online banking or less trust in digital banking.

This development could lead to an increasing loss of trust among customers in Postbank and Deutsche Bank, which could have a long-term impact on the market position of both banks. Banks must therefore ensure that they best compensate for the problems caused by branch reductions and improve their customer service in order to regain customer trust.