Lloyds to lose title of UK’s biggest branch network to rival bank

May 21, 2026 · 9:16 AM UTC ·4 min read · 0 reactions · 0 comments · 20 views

TL;DR · WeSearch summary

Lloyds Banking Group is set to lose its title as the UK's largest bank branch network to Nationwide building society. Nationwide anticipates having 696 branches, while Lloyds will reduce its number to 610 after closing 95 sites. The shift comes as in-person banking experiences a resurgence in popularity among customers.

Key facts

▪Nationwide building society expects to become the largest bank branch network in the UK next month.
▪Lloyds Banking Group is closing 95 branches, reducing its total to 610 by March next year.
▪Nationwide has seen a 20 percent increase in new current accounts opened through its branches in the past year.

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The Independent (UK) publishes from United Kingdom and files mainly under news. We currently carry 922 of its stories.

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Record

Original publisher	The Independent
Canonical URL	https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/lloyds-nationwide-uk-biggest-bank-branch-b2980994.html
Publication time	Thu, 21 May 2026 09:16:08 GMT
Retrieval time	2026-05-21T09:26:10.684Z
Last seen	2026-05-21T09:26:10.684Z
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Excerpt method	First ~120 words (~800 chars) of extracted publisher body, fair-use limited.
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Publisher visit	Yes — open original
Substitutes article?	No — link-out required for full text

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Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand

NewsUKHome NewsLloyds to lose title of UK’s biggest branch network to rival bank‘Tide is turning’ as in-person banking is apparently regaining popularityAnna Wise Thursday 21 May 2026 10:16 BSTBookmarkBookmark popoverRemoved from bookmarksClose popover{"translations":{"comments":"Go to comments","share":"Share","copyLink":"Copy link","bookmark":"Bookmark","removeBookmark":"Remove bookmark"},"showComments":false,"showBookmark":true,"articleId":"CF1:2980976To1","articleMeta":{"url":"https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/lloyds-nationwide-uk-biggest-bank-branch-b2980994.html","title":"Lloyds to lose title of UK’s biggest branch network to rival bank"}}Martin Lewis warns 21-year-olds are missing out on share of £1.6bn savingsYour support helps us to tell the storyRead moreSupport…

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