# Bank branch desertification in Italy > Live situation record from CLSTR: https://clstr.news/situations/bank-branch-desertification-in-italy > Updated: 2026-09-17T07:51:25.000Z. Sources: 57. Developments: 8. By mid-2026, Italy’s banking network had shrunk by 36.7% since 2015, with over 11,000 branches closed. The total number of outlets fell from 30,258 in 2015 to approximately 19,016 by the first half of 2026. This decline has left 3,456 municipalities (roughly 44% of the country) without a physical bank, impacting an estimated 4.8 million residents and 310,000 enterprises. Regional disparities are widening. Calabria remains the most affected region, with 74.5% of its communes lacking a branch. Piedmont also faces a crisis, with 65.8% of towns unserved. In the Marche region, branch counts fell by 25.9% between 2020 and 2025, leaving 31.5% of municipalities without a branch. In the province of Fermo, 19 municipalities lack both branches and ATMs, with only Amandola maintaining an active branch in the High Appennines area. In the province of Macerata, the decline has been particularly sharp; data from the Bank of Italy shows branches fell from 125 at the end of 2024 to 118 by the end of 2025, a 5.6% annual decrease that exceeds the 4.3% decline recorded across the broader Marche region. In the Piceno area of Marche, 10 out of 33 municipalities—including Castorano, Cossignano, and Montemonaco—lack any bank branch. This trend disproportionately affects towns with fewer than 1,000 inhabitants, where nine out of ten are without local banking services, impacting small businesses, the elderly, and local social cohesion. In Umbria, one-third of municipalities lack banking services. Approximately 53,000 residents and 3,400 businesses in Umbria live in unserved municipalities, a 10% increase over the previous year. To combat this, the Umbria Region, Anci Umbria, and several banking trade unions—including Fabi, First-Cisl, Fisac-Cgil, Uilca, and Unisin—signed a four-year memorandum of understanding to protect credit access and safeguard employment. The trend is driven by bank mergers, digitalization, and cost-cutting. ## Claims - Italy lost more than 11,000 bank branches between 2015 and 2025, a 36.7 % reduction. (disputed by 4 sources) - Abruzzo experienced a 36.7% reduction in bank branches between 2015 and 2025. (disputed by 2 sources) - Abruzzo has 61.3 % of its municipalities (187 of 305) without a bank branch, affecting 163,769 residents and 11,085 enterprises. (corroborated by 4 sources) - Approximately 44 % of Italian municipalities have no bank branch as of 2025. (corroborated by 3 sources) - Around 4.8 million Italians live in municipalities without a bank branch. (corroborated by 3 sources) - In the province of Pesaro‑Urbino, 14 municipalities have no staffed bank branch and 13 lack even an ATM. (corroborated by 3 sources) - 71 out of 225 municipalities in the Marche region lack a bank branch. (corroborated by 2 sources) - The number of bank branches in Italy fell from 30,258 in 2015 to approximately 19,140 in 2025. (corroborated by 2 sources) - Ten municipalities in the Piceno area are without bank branches. (corroborated by 2 sources) - In Treviso province, one out of three municipalities has no bank branch. (single source) ## Timeline ### 2026-09-17: Italy banking desertification: 10 Piceno municipalities lack branches Italy's bank branch network has shrunk by 36.7% since 2015. In the Marche region, 71 municipalities lack branches, significantly impacting small towns and local businesses. 4 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/italy-banking-desertification-10-piceno-municipalities-lack-branches ### 2026-09-09: Banking desertification concerns rise in Italy's Macerata province A new regional committee aims to combat banking desertification in Italy, following a 5.6% decline in bank branches in the Macerata province over the last year. 2 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/banking-desertification-concerns-rise-in-italys-macerata-province ### 2026-08-26: Umbria signs protocol to combat banking desertification Umbria has signed a four-year agreement with local municipalities and unions to fight banking desertification, which has left 53,000 residents and 3,400 businesses without local bank branches. 4 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/umbria-signs-protocol-to-combat-banking-desertification ### 2026-08-23: Marche region faces banking desertification as branch numbers drop Bank branches in Italy's Marche region have decreased by nearly 26% since 2020, leaving over 30% of municipalities without physical branches and raising concerns about service access in rural areas. 5 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/marche-region-faces-banking-desertification-as-branch-numbers-drop ### 2026-08-10: Banking desertification affects 665,000 people in Piedmont Over 665,000 people and 48,300 businesses in Piedmont, Italy, lack access to physical bank branches due to rising banking desertification. 4 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/banking-desertification-affects-665000-people-in-piedmont ### 2026-08-04: Italy loses over 11,000 bank branches in ten years, deepening credit desertification Between 2015‑2025 Italy closed over 11,000 bank branches, cutting the network by 36.7% and leaving millions—especially the elderly—without nearby services; Calabria is hardest hit with 74% of municipalities and 5 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/italy-loses-over-11000-bank-branches-in-ten-years-deepening-credit-desertification ### 2026-08-01: Italy sees massive bank‑branch closures, millions left without local services Italy lost over 11,000 bank branches (‑36.7 %) from 2015‑2025, leaving 44 % of municipalities unserved and 4.8 million people without a local bank; regional desertification rates range from 57 % in Liguria to 21 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/bank-branch-desertification-leaves-many-italian-towns-without-services ### 2026-07-29: Italy closes 126 bank branches in H1 2026, 11.5 million left without local service Italy closed 126 bank branches in H1 2026, leaving 19,016 total and 11.5 million people in bank‑less towns; Molise, Calabria and Abruzzo are hardest hit. 16 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/modena-households-see-1-billion-drop-in-bank-deposits --- Cite as: Bank branch desertification in Italy. CLSTR, https://clstr.news/situations/bank-branch-desertification-in-italy