Truist Financial closing six local branches as consolidation efforts continue

Truist Financial Corp. (NYSE: TFC) is shuttering six more Charlotte-area branches this month as part of ongoing consolidation efforts, according to filings with the North Carolina Commissioner of Banks.

Those branches are at:

Truist confirmed all of the branches will close on March 30. A spokesperson said there were no job losses associated with the closures. All of the branches have a nearby counterpart that will stay open for customers.

These nearby sites will follow a blended branch strategy, meaning they serve BB&T and SunTrust customers. BB&T and SunTrust merged in December 2019 to form Truist, now the nation's sixth-largest bank with more than $500 billion in assets. The bank is temporarily using the blended branch approach to try to avoid customer confusion, especially in markets with more brand recognition. Clients do not have to change their account numbers.

Truist has said it cross-trained more than 1,000 employees to work in the BB&T and SunTrust systems.

"As we transition to the full Truist client experience in 2022, we’re continually working to create a better banking experience for our clients. While more and more clients are choosing to bank with us digitally, our branches will continue to be an important part of our service model for both our clients and communities," Truist said in a statement to the Charlotte Business Journal.

The bank is reopening some branch lobbies after implementing pandemic-related restrictions last year. Some locations still require appointments for in-person services outside of drive-thrus.

Charlotte-based Truist is closing 23 branches in North Carolina in the first quarter. It is also closing another 16 in South Carolina, although none locally. Most of the closures are related to the consolidation, according to the filings. Closings are also happening in Florida, Georgia and Virginia, to name a few. Truist's footprint largely stretches across the Southeast.

This marks another wave of local branch closures. The bank made its first merger-related closures here in early December. That included at least four branches in the Charlotte region. It is this area's second-largest bank by deposits. Truist slowed closures during the height of the pandemic but has since ramped up those efforts.

The bank had plans to consolidate nearly 230 more branches in the first quarter. It will still have roughly 2,500 total branches at the end of the quarter.

Branch consolidation is a big part of Truist's ongoing integration. Pre-merger, the bank reported well over 700 overlapping branches within a couple of miles of one another, including some that shared a parking lot. Despite closures, executives pledged early on to avoid layoffs in customer-facing roles. That's why it is shuffling employees to other branch locations.

Consolidation is, as expected, also a way for Truist to reach its targeted cost savings. It is eyeing $1.6 billion in net merger-related savings by the end of 2022, with plans to surpass the $1 billion mark this year. A core conversion is slated for early 2022. Truist, despite preserving customer-facing roles, is cutting its overall employee headcount. It cut about 1,300 roles in the fourth quarter. The bank is also shaving off 4.8 million square feet in real estate.

Truist will report its first-quarter earnings — including progress on the integration — before the market opens on April 15.