1. Islandsbanki – Head Office Branch
This branch, situated in Iceland’s tallest building, merged three separate locations into one. The design features three distinctive, interlinked zones. The ‘Quick Serve Zone’ at the front of the branch integrates facilities for self-service and desks staffed by universal bankers. The ‘Community Lounge’ is located at the heart of the branch, a homely environment where customers can relax, enjoy complimentary coffee, and chat with branch staff. The branch also offers a wide array of events for both customers and the community at large — a showcase for the bank’s equivalent of Ted Talks and similar seminars. In the ‘Engage & Advise Zone,’ staff share agile meeting spaces, with dedicated workspace found in the back office. (Photos by Bernhard Kristinn.)
Design Credit: Allen International
2. ING Direct – Client House
ING opened its first Client House in Belgium. The space is designed to balance both the digital + personal aspects of banking today. Employees are on hand to offer banking services to customers, and all of ING’s digital tools are on display. The Client House also has various meeting rooms each equipped with digital screens and video conferencing systems.
“There are moments in people’s lives when they want to talk to a banker in a setting where everything is at hand to quickly take the right decision,” said Erik Van Den Eynden, CEO of ING in Belgium. “A client house to me should feel like home. The people side is as important as the digital aspect.”
ING expects to open another 15 client houses in Belgium by the end of 2020.
3. HSBC – Flagship Branch for Premier Banking
This two-story location was designed specifically to serve HSBC’s Premier Banking clients — an up-market segment for high-income depositors. The branch is open and welcoming, yet affords varying levels of privacy for quick, informal chats and more intimate, sensitive meetings with relationship managers.
4. NAB – Sydney Flagship ‘Brand Beacon’
This concept includes spaces for seminars, co-working zones and pop-ups. The storefront creates visual interest and adds to the texture, vibrancy and character of the streetscape.
The ground floor functions as the retail store — a technology-enabled transactional environment. Instead of traditional tellers, roaming hosts act as concierges to assist customers with self-service transactions and to direct them to the appropriate specialists for more complex financial conversations. Armed with tablets, staff can demonstrate the latest digital tools and self-serve functions in branch. In-house hospitality is provided through the Wise Foundation Barista Program, which helps people seeking asylum to gain work experience and training.
A test-and-learn zone serves as an “working lab” environment where staff and customers alike can experiment with new prototype products that may impact wider store network.
The stairs double as a space for NAB seminars, curated functions and other community-based activities.
A co-working environment is situated on level one with multiple typography facilitating various collaborative, co-working and meeting settings.
Design Credit: Warren & Mahoney
4. Lloyds Bank – Super-Size Café
It may look like a slick HQ in Silicon Valley, complete with its own coffee shop, chic “breakout pods,” the latest biometric technology and an events program, but it’s actually Lloyds Bank branch in Manchester. This “super-size branch” measures a whopping 15,000 square feet and cost £3 million (roughly USD $4 million).
Lloyds says the Manchester outlet is the first of a small number of flagship branches to be opened across the UK under the Lloyds, Halifax and Bank of Scotland brands. They will provide a hub in some of the UK’s major cities.
Design Credit: M Worldwide
