General News
17 July, 2023
Bank's final days of service
MARK Lacey will close the doors of his Bendigo Bank agency in Pyramid Hill for the last time on Thursday. The Pyramid Hill agency is one of more than a dozen being pulled from rural towns and regional suburbs. Bendigo Bank claimed the closures came...
MARK Lacey will close the doors of his Bendigo Bank agency in Pyramid Hill for the last time on Thursday.
The Pyramid Hill agency is one of more than a dozen being pulled from rural towns and regional suburbs.
Bendigo Bank claimed the closures came after a drop in over-the-counter transactions and more people using online services.
The bank said the decline had put pressure on its agency model.
Mr Lacey was among a group of Pyramid Hill residents to attend a protest in Cohuna in April that called for the agencies to be retained. They were supported by Murray Plains MP Peter Walsh.
Ahead of next week’s midday closure, Mr Lacey said remaining customers were trying to adapt their banking activities to the change.
“A lot have left (Bendigo Bank) ... they are voting with their feet.”
The Pyramid Hill closure leaves the town without a bank or an ATM.
The agency had been in the town’s supermarket for 13 years before being taken on as a local business by Mr Lacey seven years ago.
When the closures were announced Mr Lacey said the value of local bank accounts had tripled, bringing new customers into the network that saw him paid a commission by Bendigo Bank,
Mr Lacey said this week he was reviewing opening hours of the Filipino store that he ran as part of his Kelly Street business. Hours could be reduced following the bank agency closure.
The store is the only dedicated Filipino grocery store in country Victoria serving the large expat local community.