Arlington Heights is one of the more deposit-rich Chicago suburbs, with $3.8 billion total as of June 30, according to Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. data. Wintrust branches held $1.1 billion of that, second-most in the suburb, behind JPMorgan Chase.
Unlike most other major retail banks in the region, which have pruned their brick-and-mortar networks regularly over the past several years, Wintrust has established more new branches than the few it’s closed.
“We remain bullish on branches and geographically being near our clients and communities,” said Wintrust President Tim Crane. “The branches we are closing are smaller locations in very close proximity to another Wintrust location. Most were acquired. Unlike most banks that are closing locations, depending on timing, we will open almost as many branches this year as we plan to close.”
Still, the cost-cutting opportunities are spurring even the banks most loyal to branch banking to take some action.
In addition to the two Arlington Heights locations (1845 E. Rand Road and 311 W. Arlington Heights Road), Wintrust is closing locations in Oak Brook (3824 York Road), North Chicago (1801 Sheridan Road), McHenry (2730 W. Route 120), Geneva (1542 S. Randall Road), Highland Park (643 Roger Williams Ave.), and Northfield (1751 Orchard Lane), according to filings with the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.
The Northfield branch was replaced by a new one in that village at 1852 Willow Road, Crane said.
Wintrust is opening two new branches in Oak Park this year. Likewise, another two are coming to the North Lawndale neighborhood on Chicago’s West Side. There will be other openings this year as well, Crane said.
For many banks, the pandemic has accelerated their timetables for reducing costs tied to brick and mortar. Most customers who’d been reluctant to shift to digital banking for ordinary transactions had no choice, as safety precautions led most banks to temporarily close large chunks of their networks.
The quickening of the pace of closures is an issue for retail property owners already dealing with merchants struggling to pay rent and the demise of shops and restaurants that couldn’t get through the pandemic.
Wintrust had 152 branches in the six-county area as of June 30, according to FDIC data.
For Wintrust, branches remain indispensable, Crane said. “For folks who want a mortgage or businesses who want to talk about a loan, there are occasions when a branch is needed,” he said.
The number of Wintrust deposit accounts opened remotely is up, but many customers prefer to do that in a branch, he said. When life gets closer to normal after more of the population is vaccinated, branch proximity is likely to remain an important consideration for people needing to change banks, whether it’s because of a move or a job change or dissatisfaction with their current bank.
