Gate swings shut in the local banking scene

The Gateway Bank branch at 2730 Buford Road will close this summer. (Photo by Michael Schwartz)

The Gateway Bank branch at 2730 Buford Road is one of the bank’s four Richmond locations. (Photo by Michael Schwartz)

A local bank branch will be shuttered through a round of closures ordered by its Virginia Beach owner.

One of the four Richmond branches of Gateway Bank is among seven locations being consolidated by its parent company, Hampton Roads Bankshares.

The company has not yet formally announced which Richmond location will get the ax. An employee at the Gateway branch at 2730 Buford Road in Bon Air said Thursday it was the one chosen for closure. Hampton Roads Bankshares chief executive Doug Glenn could not be reached for comment by press time.

Others on the closure list include two branches in northeastern North Carolina, three in the Hampton Roads area and one on the Eastern Shore, where it runs the Shore Bank brand. Gateway, which operates as part of Bank of Hampton Roads, also has local branches at 5300 Patterson Ave., 8209 W. Broad St., and 12090 W. Broad St.

Bank of Hampton Roads controlled about $234 million in deposits in the Richmond market, or about 0.32 percent of the total market share, according to the most recent figures from the FDIC.

The company said in a news release Wednesday the seven closures would produce “significant operating expense savings,” although it did not specify how much money would be saved.

The accounts and operations of the closed branches would be consolidated into nearby locations, according to the release. The closings are expected in June and July.

The Gateway brand has been in the area since 2008, when its founding parent company, Gateway Financial Holdings, acquired the former Bank of Richmond.

Gateway Financial was sold shortly after to Hampton Roads Bankshares.

In the years following, HRB lost hundreds of millions of dollars fueled by large amounts of bad loans. It lost $25 million in 2012, an improvement from a $98 million loss in 2011 and a $99 million loss in 2010.

It also came under written agreement with regulators during that time and has since managed to raise more than $200 million in new capital.

The company has closed more than 20 branches around Virginia and North Carolina in the last two years. It had 58 branches at the end of 2010. It will operate 33 branches, following the closings.

HRB previously sold one of its Gateway locations in Midlothian to McLean-based Sonabank.

More reading: Why 2012 was a turning point for Richmond banks

The Gateway Bank branch at 2730 Buford Road will close this summer. (Photo by Michael Schwartz)

The Gateway Bank branch at 2730 Buford Road is one of the bank’s four Richmond locations. (Photo by Michael Schwartz)

A local bank branch will be shuttered through a round of closures ordered by its Virginia Beach owner.

One of the four Richmond branches of Gateway Bank is among seven locations being consolidated by its parent company, Hampton Roads Bankshares.

The company has not yet formally announced which Richmond location will get the ax. An employee at the Gateway branch at 2730 Buford Road in Bon Air said Thursday it was the one chosen for closure. Hampton Roads Bankshares chief executive Doug Glenn could not be reached for comment by press time.

Others on the closure list include two branches in northeastern North Carolina, three in the Hampton Roads area and one on the Eastern Shore, where it runs the Shore Bank brand. Gateway, which operates as part of Bank of Hampton Roads, also has local branches at 5300 Patterson Ave., 8209 W. Broad St., and 12090 W. Broad St.

Bank of Hampton Roads controlled about $234 million in deposits in the Richmond market, or about 0.32 percent of the total market share, according to the most recent figures from the FDIC.

The company said in a news release Wednesday the seven closures would produce “significant operating expense savings,” although it did not specify how much money would be saved.

The accounts and operations of the closed branches would be consolidated into nearby locations, according to the release. The closings are expected in June and July.

The Gateway brand has been in the area since 2008, when its founding parent company, Gateway Financial Holdings, acquired the former Bank of Richmond.

Gateway Financial was sold shortly after to Hampton Roads Bankshares.

In the years following, HRB lost hundreds of millions of dollars fueled by large amounts of bad loans. It lost $25 million in 2012, an improvement from a $98 million loss in 2011 and a $99 million loss in 2010.

It also came under written agreement with regulators during that time and has since managed to raise more than $200 million in new capital.

The company has closed more than 20 branches around Virginia and North Carolina in the last two years. It had 58 branches at the end of 2010. It will operate 33 branches, following the closings.

HRB previously sold one of its Gateway locations in Midlothian to McLean-based Sonabank.

More reading: Why 2012 was a turning point for Richmond banks

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Josh
Josh
11 years ago

They were never the same after the merger with Bank of Richmond. I just closed two smaller accounts at this bank. But I’m having trouble closing out another larger account that was secured by cash. The manager one of the branches who has to “sign off is conveniently never in the office and wont return phone calls. I knew something was up. Thanks for reporting on this biz sense.