FBK’s Head of Internal Audit and Risk Management Services Department Roman Kenigsberg on Growing Number of Bank Offices

According to Kommersant, the Central Bank's data show that the number of Russian banks' offices reached a record high in November exceeding 24.2 thousand. Over one month, their number increased by more than 300 offices. These include only subsidiary offices, excluding branches, representative offices and mobile cash points.

This trend for the growing number of offices has existed since last year. Before that, starting from 2014, the number of bank offices gradually decreased. Now the growth is registered in all federal districts, with the largest number of offices opened in the Siberian, Volga and Far Eastern districts.

“The growing number of bank offices is the reverse of digitalisation. For example, before the issues with mobile banking apps in 2022, credit institutions worked hard to ensure online availability of as many processes and services as possible. It started about a decade ago, and now it’s the opposite: the banks can no longer rely on mobile apps because of the difficulties in using them. As a result of recurring issues with access to online services, physical infrastructure has become a key element enabling smooth operation of banks.

Besides, the previous trend of reducing the number of offices was largely caused by rehabilitation, licence revocations and M&As in the banking sector. Now these processes have been suspended, which also affects the current situation with the number of subdivisions," elaborated Roman Kenigsberg, Head of the Internal Audit and Risk Management Services Department.