Fifth Third Bank is closing 19 branches, while Citizens Bank is closing 7 and PNC branches 3 this week – is YOUR local branch on the chopping block?

Fifth Third Bank filed last week to close 19 brick-and-mortar locations across the country.

Of the filings made by the bank, which is headquartered in Cincinnati, eight were for branches in Ohio, four in Michigan and two in Kentucky and North Carolina, respectively.

Illinois, Georgia and Indiana each had one branch that the bank, which operates more than 1,000 branches in ten states, wanted to eliminate – according to a weekly bulletin published Friday by the Office of the Comptroller of the Monet (OCC).

Citizens Bank has applied to close seven branches, in addition to the six locations it requested the week before. It also applied to open three locations: two in Florida and one in Boston, Massachusetts.

PNC Bank, meanwhile, has filed to close three branches: one in Alabama, one in Illinois and one in Texas.

In total, the OCC, which requires most banks to record closures, reported that companies had had to close 42 branches under its jurisdiction between Oct. 15 and 21.

These also include closures of Bank of America, Wells Fargo and Capital One.

Of the seven branches that Citizens Bank, which operates about 1,000 locations, applied to close, three were in New York, three in New Jersey and one in Mystic, Connecticut.

For comparison, the OCC also received seven reports from branches.

In addition to the three from Citizens Bank, Capital One has applied to open a location in Jersey City, Trustco Bank has applied to open a branch in Slingerlands, New York, First National Bank of Hughes Springs has filed to locate in Marshall, Texas, and Columbia Bank has filed. to set up a branch in Teaneck, New Jersey.

Data from S&P Global Market Intelligence earlier this year showed that a total of 1,144 national and regional banks in 49 states closed between Jan. 1 and July 31 — with companies pulling out of some areas faster than others.

Recent research from DailyMail.com found that New Jersey had the highest number of bank closures of any US state between January and August of this year.

The latest round of bank branch closures comes as more Americans struggle without access to basic financial services.

An exclusive DailyMail.com poll last month found that the majority of Americans are concerned about the widespread closure of physical locations.

About 51 percent of Americans are “very concerned” or “somewhat concerned” about the impact of declining retail outlets, which disproportionately affect poorer households, the survey found.

This is compared to just 3 percent of Americans with a household income of $100,000 or more.

With inflation soaring and the cost of living soaring, experts warn that customers are more likely to want to discuss their finances face-to-face with their bank.

Branches provide a lifeline for anyone who needs to speak to an employee or perform simple tasks such as cashing a check, making a deposit or obtaining cash.

According to the National Coalition for Community Reinvestmenta third of venues closed between 2017 and 2021 were in predominantly lower-income, majority-minority areas.

The accelerating closures risk communities becoming so-called “banking deserts” – when they do not have access to a bank or credit union within 10 miles – making residents increasingly vulnerable to falling prey to expensive lending options such as personal loans .

When a bank closes a branch, it must notify the OCC.

In a statement to DailyMail.com in August, a spokesperson said: “The OCC understands the importance of bank branches and is committed to supporting access to banking services in all communities.”

They also noted that while banks and credit unions must notify their “primary regulator” of closures, the law requiring them to do so does not allow the regulator to object to the closure.

It also noted that the OCC does not regulate all banks in the U.S. and that companies have some discretion as to when to close a branch after filing.

“Typically, notices appear when the transactions are effective, although branch closures usually appear when the OCC receives notice of the proposed closure,” the spokesperson added.