As part of its merger process, Truist plans to close five branch locations of either BB&T or SunTrust, according to a company spokeswoman.
The merged entity of the two banks has been making steady progress toward a leaner branch network since about the fourth quarter of 2020.
“With so many heritage BB&T and SunTrust branches in close proximity to one another, there are natural opportunities to reduce redundant branches with very little impact to our clients,” Shelley Miller said in an email Monday. “It’s also important to note there are no job losses associated with these consolidations; all teammates are being offered roles in other locations.”
In Wilmington, the BB&T branch at 2401 S. 17th St. and the SunTrust branch at 5201 S. College Road will close, and customer accounts will be transferred to the Truist Pine Valley branch at 4320 S. 17th St.
A second SunTrust branch – at 3904 Oleander Drive – will close and those accounts transferred to Truist’s branch at 3417 Oleander Drive.
Two locations in Brunswick County are affected as well. The BB&T branch at 5002 Main St. in Shallotte will close and transfer customer accounts to Truist’s Shallotte Main Branch at 100 Shallotte Crossing Parkway. In Leland, SunTrust’s branch at 1100 Town Lake Drive will close and accounts will move to Truist’s Brunswick Forest branch at 1220 Dickinson Drive.
“We’re being thoughtful in our approach and are keeping the needs of our clients at the forefront of our decisions,” Miller continued. “At this time, there’s no need for clients to make changes to their accounts. Until we fully transition into Truist in Q1 2022, our branches will retain the heritage branding.As we move further into the transition, we will be announcing exciting new products.”
That means that customers of BB&T and SunTrust can continue to use their branded bank cards, checks and deposit slips until the brand conversion to Truist is complete, sometime early in 2022.
When BB&T and SunTrust announced their “merger of equals” in February 2019, officials estimated that the resulting company, later named Truist, would close about 800 branches, mostly those with overlapping service areas. But as part of the merger agreement with regulators, officials agreed to not close most of those redundant locations until at least one year after the transaction closed.
The merger was finalized on Dec. 10, 2019.
