Leeds Building Society showing value of personal touch isn't dead: The Yorkshire Post says

This has all sorts of impacts on elderly and vulnerable customers with less confidence with technology, as well as hurting already struggling town and city centres by giving people one less reason to visit their local shops.

But Leeds Building Society are swimming against the tide by committing to maintain their 50 branches across the country while investigating the potential of opening even more.

The Society obviously has a far smaller branch network than the major high street banks to maintain but the rationale given by chief executive Richard Fearon feels fairly universally applicable.

He has told The Yorkshire Post that customers love the opportunity for face-to-face contact and consistently give positive feedback about the personal touch they receive in the service they get from the society’s staff.

The investment in the network is also paying for itself – Mr Fearon said that of the £2.1bn placed in the society’s savings accounts last year by customers, half of that was done in branch.

Of course, many people do enjoy the ease and speed of online banking and improvements in mobile apps have made it simpler for millions in recent years.

But in a world where people are increasingly being pushed away from them, it is nice to see there is a value – both tangible and intangible – to personal interactions.