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n e w h a v e n b i z . c o m | M a r c h 2 0 2 1 | n e w h a v e n B I Z 19 newhavenBIZ ENEWS For advertising opportunities please contact: Advertising @newhavenbiz.com or 908-963-9525 Business news three days a week: Tuesday, Wednesday & Friday The region's authoritative B2B enews is now read by over 5,400 business decision makers F O C U S : B a n k i n g & F i n a n c e ning multiple checks and getting immedi- ate access to funds, can all be done without ever stepping foot in a bank, he noted. While some customers may have online security concerns, Eagleson notes that elec- tronic banking can be better at mitigating the. Setting up text alerts about transfers over a set amount is an example, he said. "I think people who were resistant to technology won't go back once they see the convenience," Eagleson said. Renee Pallenberg, GSB's senior vice president, director of marketing and cash management, said the pandemic forced the bank to fast-track planned enhance- ments. e ability to open business accounts online, for example, had been in development, but was pushed up. e use of electronic signatures has also been expanded, she said, broadening contactless services. New normal Ohio-based KeyBank, which has 56 branches in Connecticut, is seeing similar trends. In 2020, and in prior pre-COVID years, KeyBank closed about 2 percent to 3 percent of its branches across its 15-state footprint. In 2021, KeyBank anticipates this rate to jump to about 7 percent, or about 70 out of its 1,100 branches. Mark Commune, a regional retail leader and senior vice president at KeyBank, is based in Cheshire and handles its New England region. Commune said the pandemic prompted a significant drop in branch lobby usage, along with an increased use of ATMs, drive- throughs and digital banking. App use for deposit capture, for exam- ple, jumped 25 percent. KeyBank also saw increases in the opening of accounts online. "We noticed a lot of the clients stayed with the digital channels because they became accustomed to it and it was conve- nient," Commune said. At branches, appointments have become the new normal, rather than drop-in visits, Commune said. is has worked out well for clients and bankers. "Rather than having people waiting, we were able to carve out time to specifically spend with clients," Commune said. "is allowed us to spend time to go over their needs, do a quality financial wellness review and give recommendations." Big banks vs. small banks KeyBank, which has roughly $169 billion in assets, has been working to upgrade its digital tools. It has also partnered with Zoom to allow for virtual meetings with bankers, including for small business and consumer financial wellness reviews. While this was initially done to manage virus-re- lated social distancing, it has proven to be so well-received, the practice is expected to continue post-pandemic. Bankers can share their screens with cus- tomers, to give the same experience as an in-person meeting, according to Commune. Alice C. Ferreira, senior vice president of corporate communications and public affairs for Webster Bank, which has $32.6 billion in assets, said banking industry trends continue to show customers in- creasingly prefer the 24/7 convenience of using digital and mobile channels for more routine transactions. "We've seen this preference increase across our footprint, and we've made invest- ments in our digital banking channels to help customers with more online services," Ferreira said. "ough this trend started well before the pandemic, its evolution has certainly been accelerated by COVID-19." Meantime, with larger banks closing branches, some small bank CEOs say it could provide them a growth opportunity. Diane Arnold, who will be taking over as president and CEO of $469 million-asset Essex Savings Bank this summer, said when a competitor closed a branch in Old Lyme, her bank saw business pick up in that community. "I think we are going to see that in some of our other towns as well," Arnold said. n Guilford Savings Bank's new 2,000-square-foot branch at the intersection of Washington and Blakeslee avenues in North Haven. KeyBank's Mark Commune, regional retail leader, senior vice president. PHOTO | GARY LEWIS PHOTO | CONTRIBUTED

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