Chase is planning to temporarily close 1,000 branches, starting Thursday, to protect its employees and help reduce the spread of coronavirus, according to a memo from Thasunda Brown Duckett, CEO of the consumer bank, to branch employees seen by Cheddar.
The bank will continue to pay branch employees for their regularly scheduled hours even if they are affected by reduced hours, branch closures, or asked to stay home, the letter said. It is also giving branch employees two additional paid vacation days.
Branches with teller partitions and drive-throughs will remain open. Financial advisors, small business bankers, and home lending advisors will begin working from home, also starting Thursday.
Chase, the largest U.S. bank by assets, has about 5,100 branches and is the first of the major financial institutions to report branch closures related to the fallout of COVID-19.
Duckett also emphasized the importance of helping “ensure customers can bank digitally and know all the options to bank in every scenario.”
"This is an opportunity for banks to show their breadth of digital banking options because we know banking services are not set up to operate remotely,” said Dave Donovan, EVP of financial services at Publicis Sapient.
Though fintech has disrupted the traditional financial services industry for the last 10 years with mobile- and digital-first banking experiences, the bigger and older players typically haven’t made any true digital shifts.
"Financial tools will be imperative in easing the burden during this time,” Donovan added. “Customers not only have to continue paying bills and conducting their regular banking — and they’ll have to do it all via mobile or desktop.”
Chase emphasized it still has a strong physical presence, however.
“Chase is open for business in every one of markets, with bankers in our branches ready to help customers across our entire footprint,” a bank spokesperson said in a follow-up statement. “Our temporarily smaller footprint will allow us to provide appropriate coverage in every market we serve so we can continue to serve our clients with the services they need.”
Ford is recalling more than 355,000 of its pickup trucks across the U.S. because of an instrument panel display failure that’s resulted in critical information, like warning lights and vehicle speed, not showing up on the dashboard.
Nvidia reported a 56% increase in second-quarter revenue and a 59% rise in net income compared to a year ago.
The Rev. Al Sharpton is set to lead a protest march on Wall Street to urge corporate America to resist the Trump administration’s campaign to roll back diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. The New York civil rights leader will join clergy, labor and community leaders Thursday in a demonstration through Manhattan’s Financial District that’s timed with the anniversary of the Civil Rights-era March on Washington in 1963. Sharpton called DEI the “civil rights fight of our generation." He and other Black leaders have called for boycotting American retailers that scaled backed policies and programs aimed at bolstering diversity and reducing discrimination in their ranks.
President Donald Trump's administration last month awarded a $1.2 billion contract to build and operate what's expected to become the nation’s largest immigration detention complex to a tiny Virginia firm with no experience running correction facilities.
Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos claims audiences don't want to watch Netflix movies in theaters, but that seems not to be the case recently.
Chipmaker Nvidia is poised to release a quarterly report that could provide a better sense of whether the stock market has been riding an overhyped artificial intelligence bubble or is being propelled by a technological boom that’s still gathering momentum.
Cracker Barrel said late Tuesday it’s returning to its old logo after critics — including President Donald Trump — protested the company’s plan to modernize.
Low-value imports are losing their duty-free status in the U.S. this week as part of President Donald Trump's agenda for making the nation less dependent on foreign goods. A widely used customs exemption for international shipments worth $800 or less is set to end starting on Friday. Trump already ended the “de minimis” rule for inexpensive items sent from China and Hong Kong, but having to pay import taxes on small parcels from everywhere else likely will be a big change for some small businesses and online shoppers. Purchases that previously entered the U.S. without needing to clear customs will be subject to the origin country’s tariff rate, which can range from 10% to 50%.
Southwest Airlines will soon require plus-size travelers to pay for an extra seat in advance if they can't fit within the armrests of one seat. This change is part of several updates the airline is making. The new rule starts on Jan. 27, the same day Southwest begins assigning seats. Currently, plus-size passengers can pay for an extra seat in advance and later get a refund, or request a free extra seat at the airport. Under the new policy, refunds are still possible but not guaranteed. Southwest said in a statement it is updating policies to prepare for assigned seating next year.
Cracker Barrel is sticking with its new logo. For now. But the chain is also apologizing to fans who were angered when the change was announced last week.
