Filenews 25 May 2023
942 bank employees remained out of banks within a year, while 56 bank branches were closed and 62 automated teller machines (ATMs) were shut down all over Cyprus.
According to data collected annually by the Association of Greek Banks and obtained by "F", which are part of a publication that will be released during the annual general meeting to be held on June 20, customer service points have been greatly reduced in 2022, significantly changing the banking system, while every year, at least until last year, Hundreds of jobs are being lost in an attempt to reduce operating costs.
The digital transformation, which started at a strong pace substantially in the last three years, and the reduction in staff costs promoted by bank administrations, through generous voluntary redundancy schemes, led to the reduction of the number of bank employees from 7,463 in 2021 to 6,521 in 2022. For the time being, banks are only hiring specialists focused mainly on digital transformation.
An important element of the banking market in 2022 was that RCB Bank was also closed, due to sanctions from the US and Europe, resulting in one less bank in 2023. More specifically, for employees in each bank in 2022: Bank of Cyprus 2,567 (2021: 2,996), Hellenic Bank 2,142 (2021: 2,610), Alpha Bank 440 (2021:492), National Bank of Greece (Cyprus) 111 (2021:128), CDB Bank 138 (2021: 148), Societe Generale Cyprus 102 (2021:108), Astrobank 444 (2021:464), Eurobank Cyprus 435 (2021: 448), Ancoria 108 (2021:103).
In 2021 the number of bank employees in Cyprus was 8,072, up from 8,347 in 2020. The largest number of bank employees in Cyprus, based on available data, was in 2012, reaching 12,853. In ten years, bank employees have fallen by 50% as 6,332 employees have left the profession.
In addition to the departure of bank employees, bank administrations also closed several branches and ATMs, resulting in a significant contraction of the network. Specifically, in 2022 the number of branches was: Bank of Cyprus 90 (2021: 60), Elliniki 79 (2021: 55), Alpha Bank 17 (2021: 15), CDB Bank 2 (2021:2), Societe Generale Cyprus 3 (2021:3), Astrobank 14 (2021:14), Eurobank 8 (2021: 8), Ancoria 3 (2021:3).
Significant changes were also made in 2022 in the number of ATMs, with banks closing quite a bit and promoting online transactions. More specifically: Bank of Cyprus 133 (2021:156), Hellenic Bank 161 (2021:192), Alpha Bank 12 (2021: 20), National Bank of Greece Cyprus 5 (2021:5), CDB Bank 0 (2021:0), Societe Generale Cyprus 3 (2021:3), Astrobank 15 (2021:15), Eurobank Cyprus 0 (2021: 0), Ancoria 5 (2021:5).
