Australia’s big four banks have separately agreed to extend their pauses on regional branch closures until mid-2027, confirming their agreements with the Federal Government.

National Australia Bank (NAB) has committed to a new moratorium on regional branch closures, while the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) and Westpac have confirmed an extension to their existing moratoriums (previously set to the end of 2016).

CBA, Australia’s biggest retail bank, said it will also invest up to $100 million to upgrade its branches and ATM fleet Australia-wide.

NAB effectively recommences its regional branch closure halt, which was lifted back in 2021 under then-chief executive Ross McEwan.

The commitments from CBA, Westpac and NAB now fall into line with conditions imposed on ANZ, which had previously agreed to a regional branch closure halt as part of its agreed terms with the Government to progress with its acquisition of Suncorp Bank.

ANZ has also separately confirmed its first deal with Australia Post to enable Bank@Post services from 1 October 2025. Customers of CBA, Westpac and NAB can already access Bank@Post services, which offers a limited range of banking services, including cash and cheque deposits, money withdrawals, and account balance checks within AusPost branches.

Macquarie and HSBC have also commenced negotiations to offer services through Bank@Post.

Anna Bligh, chief executive of the Australian Banking Association (ABA), Australia’s peak banking industry body, welcomed the closure pause agreements from the big four banks as a “major commitment to keep regional branches open and available to customers”, despite noting that in-branch interactions have reduced by around 50 per cent in recent years.

“Banks are ensuring Australians can continue to access high-quality banking services no matter where they live,” Bligh added.

“Our industry will continue to work with the Government to ensure banking services continue to meet the needs of customers across regional Australia.”

The Government noted that, since 2017, more than a third (36 per cent) of bank branches in regional Australia have closed.

“Banks have a responsibility to regional communities and we’re holding them to it,” said Financial Services Minister Stephen Jones in a joint statement, further noting the criticality of face‑to‑face services, “particularly for people and small businesses in regional areas, where digital alternatives may not always be accessible or meet their needs”.

The Financial Services Union (FSU), however, was scathing of the agreements, arguing that they serve merely to “[tinker] around the edges of the agreements already in place with the big four [banks]” rather than offering any substantive commitment to regional communities and physical branch staff.

It noted that the “non-binding moratorium” applies only to the big four banks and “does nothing to protect regional banking services” nor “reverse the damage” of previous closures.

The FSU cited the mutual bank People First’s decision, announced late last month, to close 20 per cent of its branch network by April this year, totalling 18 Heritage Bank and People’s Choice branches across Australia.

The recently merged mutual, in its closure announcement, claimed fewer than 0.7 per cent of customers associated with these branches were using them monthly in the past year.

As well, the FSU noted the Bank of Queensland’s recent shuttering of 14 branches, with “fears for the remainder of the 114 owner-managed branches it has bought back”.

The Union has called on the Government to introduce legislation to safeguard regional banking services and physical branch networks, and “to declare banking an essential service and develop a mandatory industry code” – as recommended in the Senate Rural and Regional Affairs Inquiry into regional bank closures conducted last May.