Popular Bank Shutting Multiple NJ Locations, Cites 'Evolving Needs'

NEW JERSEY - A national bank chain with multiple New Jersey locations is closing more than a dozen branches, including some in the Garden State.

Santander is shutting its doors across nearly 20 locations across the northeastern United States.

According to USA Today, 18 branches throughout New Jersey, Pennsylvania and New York will be closing between now and August.

A spokesperson for Santander attributes the move to "evolving needs" and that “Santander Bank continues to refine its branch footprint and retail presence, including introducing new formats and investing in digital capabilities to better accommodate our customers."

The following locations in New Jersey will be affected:

• 214 Washington St. (Hoboken)
• 873 Broad St. (Newark)
• 40 S Main St. (Wharton)
• 2583 Pennington Rd. (Pennington)

The move to close locations across the Northeast follows 95 branch closures in the United Kingdom. A bank spokesperson said the U.K. closures comes from “a rapid movement of customers choosing to do their banking digitally."

Across the industry, the rate of bank branch closures in the U.S. ticked upward in the first quarter of 2025, according to S&P Global, led by 50 U.S. Bank locations and 23 for Wells Fargo. Flagstar had 16 during the first quarter, and has planned 60 by the end of the year.

The evolution of online services has led Santander alone to hit $2 billion in deposits through its digital Openbank, as of February after launching in October of 2024.

“Our aim is to become a national, digital bank with branches and reaching this deposit milestone at record pace is a testament to our customer-obsessed mindset, commitment to innovation, and global connectivity,” Swati Bhatia, Santander's head of retail banking, added. “We are uniquely positioned to provide U.S. consumers with the digital banking experience of a FinTech and the strength and stability of a leading global bank.”

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