German Postbank closes ops at rural POs

Postbank, the banking arm of German postal group Deutsche Post AG (DPWGn.DE), said on Friday it would close bank counters in 1,200 rural post offices by July 1 to save costs. A spokesman for the bank said the number of Deutsche Post outlets offering retail banking would be cut to 11,500 from 12,700 because 75 percent of clients in those branches had used banking services only once a year on average.” Reuters: “The unlisted bank, which has the largest branch network in Germany, has largely resisted the German banking sector crisis because it has much lower operating costs than rivals such as Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE) or Commerzbank (CBKG.DE) as its branches are housed within its parent’s post offices.”