Less than three months after announcing that it wants to close the Cheltenham & Gloucester branch network, Lloyds Banking Group is now reviewing its decision. Lloyds, which is 43% owned by government, has said that the 164 branch network will now be open even after the previously announced closure date of November – reported Financial Times.
Industry experts believe that this sudden flip-flop is related to its recent application to the European Commission for approval of a government aid. As per the rules, firms that get government help for more than six months are required to restructure their operations.
Keeping its branch network open is expected to allow the bank to give it as a possible concession to the EC in return for government aid, reported the Daily Mail. Bankers said: “They have almost nothing else to sell and they missed a trick here in the first place by saying they would close it,” as quoted in the newspaper.
