England’s Banking Boom Masked by Weekly Branch Closures Since 2016

Banks Are Vanishing, But Start‑ups Are Still Doing Their Own Thing

Between 2016 and 2024, a whopping 3,700 high‑street bank branches across England have been shut down – that’s about eight fresh closures every single week. The trend suggests that the English entrepreneurial scene is increasingly cozying up to digital banks.

“Banking Deserts” – Where Cash Has Gone Missing

England boasts 41 local authorities that have seen at least one bank closure per 10,000 residents since 2016.
Westminster leads with 80 closures in nine years, which works out to 3.5 drops per 10,000 people.
Less populated Westmorland & Furness followed with 2.5 closures per 10,000, and Derbyshire Dales sat at 2.

Do Closed Banks Crack the Entrepreneurial Spirit?

Not at all. In just six years (2017‑2023) England’s business registry saw a jaw‑dropping 2 million new firms spring up, even when the world was still in lockdown and markets were rattled. That’s roughly 1.2 million deaths – but the birthrate is still the league’s star.

Take Westmorland & Furness: it’s the 3^rd highest per‑capita business‑creation zone. Camden, a “banking desert” with 40 closures, still had over 1,200 new businesses pop up in the last eight years.

Digital‑First Banks – The New Theme Park for Start‑ups

Because cash‑handling is now a swipe‑and‑go affair, 2 in 5 UK SMEs are hopping to digital-only banks. With a treasured £550 bn potential savings market, firms are ditching the old‑school teller counters for utilitarian online services.

Lightyear’s CEO, Wander Rutgers, Joins the Tank

“The fact that almost two million newcomers set up shop in England over the last nine years proves the entrepreneurial fire is still blazing,” he says. “And the paradox is that this boom is happening right alongside a flood of high‑street closures. Traditional banks are struggling to keep pace with the speed, flexibility, and digital mindset that modern businesses crave. Start‑ups are saying ‘pass the cash here’ to alternative platforms like Money Market Funds, built for the way today’s businesses need to save.”