Just 110 bank branches remain in Northern Ireland - equivalent to 5.8 per 100,000 of the population - according to Which?.
It comes after than three in every five branches across the UK, a total of 6,161 banks, have closed their doors permanently since 2015, the consumer group’s analysis found.
More than 100 banks in Northern Ireland have shut during that time too amid a relentless switch to digital banking.
Indeed 52 branches, or 27% of the region’s total bank branch network, were permanently shut in less than three years between May 2020 and January 2023, according to analysis carried out by the NI Consumer Council.
Last year saw the closure of nine more Ulster Bank branches in the north, which left only 83 of the so-called ‘big four’ (Danske Bank, Bank of Ireland, Ulster Bank and AIB) remaining.
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Danske Bank closed its branches in Cookstown, Kilkeel, Fivemiletown and Lurgan on September 16.
So far this year Halifax, HSBC and Barclays have also closed branches in Coleraine, Lisburn and Portadown while in June Halifax shut branches in Lurgan and Larne, leaving it with just 11 outlets across the north. Barclays now has just one single branch here.
The latest Which? analysis found that Yorkshire and the Humber has just 4.4 branches left per 100,000 people, making it the region with the worst branch access, followed closely by East Midlands with a 4.6 branches to 100,000 people ratio.
Scotland has the “best” access to branches, at 6.9 per 100,000 people, but Which? said the uneven spread of its population means people living in more rural areas face long journeys to use a bank.
New rules overseen by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) regulator and which came into effect last week mean banks will need to give more consideration to a local community’s cash needs before deciding to close a branch.
The watchdog will require firms to check whether additional services would be needed should a branch shut its doors or an ATM be switched off - and keep facilities open until the additional cash services are available.
Banks are also sharing facilities through banking hubs, where customers of all major banks can carry out regular cash transactions.
ATM and cash access network LINK has previously recommended banking hubs should open in Kilkeel, Newcastle, Comber, Warrenpoint, Portrush.
According to the FCA, Northern Ireland has a higher reliance on cash than any other UK region, with 13% of adults saying they use cash to pay for everything or most things, including bills (compared to just 5% in both England and Wales, and 7% in Scotland).
