FIMC has made a submission to the Access to Banking Services Review: Call for Evidence. Our submission can be found here: FIMC access to banking 160726
We very much welcome the review as we consider accessible banking services should be treated as a utility service rather than a discretionary consumer service with the market determining which services are provided and how services are provided. Indeed, we would say there is a strong case for treating access to banking as a universal service given their importance not just to consumers, but local economies and communities.
In addition to access to cash, critical services include deposit facilities (especially for small businesses), and face-to-face advice on important personal finance issues such as account opening, mortgages, access to credit and financing options (consumer and business), and dealing with scams and frauds.
The large scale closure of bank branches has affected financially vulnerable consumers and SMEs around the UK. Maintaining a comprehensive network of accessible bank branches should be a priority for government and regulators, and not left to the market.