HSBC shuts the first an only UK bank branch reserved exclusively for rich customers

Britain’s first HSBC bank branch exclusively for the rich is to close – because not enough people use it, according to the mirror.co.uk.

HSBC shocked customers when it opened a branch for upmarket customers only in the posh Canford Cliffs area of Poole, Dorset, in 2007.Canford Cliffs is close to Sandbanks, one of the most expensive places to live in the world. A millionaire’s playground, Canford Cliffs and Sandbanks are home to several football managers including Harry Redknapp and Tony Pulis.

To qualify to speak to a cashier, ‘Premier’ customers had to have £50,000 pounds in savings, a £200,000 mortgage or a £100,000 mortgage plus a salary of £75,000.

Average earners were restricted to using cashpoints and automated paying-in machines and were forced to drive three miles to the next nearest branch if they wanted face-to-face service.

The bank further angered customers by stating that “not everyone in the world is equal” and that people with a high salaries expect a better service.

But eight years after launching the controversial service, the branch is shutting, blaming the rising trend of internet banking and an expiring lease on the building.

HSBC insisted the closure was not a result of only serving Premier customers.

A spokesman for HSBC said: “The lease on this premises is due to expire shortly, plus with increase in the use of online and telephone banking leading to declining branch usage, we have taken the difficult decision to close the branch.

The branch will close on November 6 this year.