THE Monmouth branch of Santander - in the town's Agincourt Square - will close as part of a UK-wide scaling down of the bank's network.

The Spanish-owned bank plans to close 140 branches, including several across Wales, reducing the number by almost one fifth, and putting 1,270 jobs at risk - but it hopes to redeploy around a third of the staff affected.

Santander has blamed the closures on "changes in how customers are choosing to carry out their banking".

It says branch transactions have fallen by almost a quarter in just three years, while digital transactions have doubles during the same period.

"We have had to take some very difficult decisions over our less visited branches," said Susan Allen, head of retail and business banking.

Santander says its remaining 614-strong network will comprise larger branches offering improved community facilities, and smaller branches using the latest technology to offer more convenience.