In an age of new channel investment, banks must restructure physical distribution and unlock value from hard assets in branches.

Bank branches can do more to take customers out of the line — and streamline the in-person experience in the process.

The divestment of a physical location wipes out valuable investment in staff, and close ties to local banking customers.

While increased use of digital banking interactions doesn’t mean the branch is dead, it does mean branches need to evolve to meet new customer expectations.

Banks may prune braches in size, but they’ll be smarter and tech forward.

Beyond short-term cost cutting, it’s all about keeping customers, retaining sales of the closed branch and sustaining the savings.

As branch traffic dwindles and banks cut costs, some institutions are installing video tellers in their drive-up lanes.