The number of bank branches in South Korea declined sharply in 2015 from the previous year as more users opted for mobile and Internet banking, data showed Monday.

A total of 13 national and regional banks had a combined 5,890 branches and representative offices across the nation as of end-2015, down 165 from a year earlier.

Standard Chartered Bank Korea, formerly SC First Bank, posted the largest drop by cutting 71 branches last year. In their place, the bank established so-called “bank shops” and smart banking centers operated by just a handful of employees.

Woori Bank shut down 37 branches, while KEB Hana Bank closed 27 and Kookmin Bank shuttered 23. As of end-2015, Kookmin had the largest number of branches at 1,138.

Banks shut more branches to cope with the rising demand for mobile and online banking options.

According to the Bank of Korea, the number of daily transactions processed via the Internet and mobile phones reached an average 78.02 million in 2015, rising 17.4 percent from the previous year.

Also, the daily average of smartphone-based mobile banking transactions reached 42.39 million, more than tripling from three years earlier, with the amount surging 36.2 percent on-year to 2.49 trillion won ($2.2 billion).

(khnews@heraldcorp.com)