Ben Verdin, Head of UK Lending Product Strategy & Management, SBS
In a March SBS guest blog in the MNM, we explored how lenders can go beyond the bricks-and-mortar sector by rethinking the role of the branch in a digital-first world. That discussion came at a crucial time for the British mortgage market. As digital adoption continues to accelerate, the demand for human support, especially to support complex lending decisions, remains high.
Recent data underline this tension. According to data published last year by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), between 2020 and 2024 the share of UK consumers using digital channels as the main way to access banking services increased from 33% to 59%. Over the same period, Britain lost more than a third of its branches, with the national network shrinking from more than 10,400 locations in 2019 to fewer than 6,900 in 2024.
This shift creates a clear challenge for UK mortgage providers. There is a need to improve processes, reduce costs, get to market faster and attract more customers. However, they must also continue to build customer loyalty through personal interactions, offering accessible personal services and providing the advice-based engagement that branch networks have historically provided. This becomes a balancing act that often requires a unique approach from lender to lender.
Finding the balance between industry and digital
The debate about branch strategy is often presented as a simple choice. To close or keep open. To digitize or invest in physical space. However, there are many lenders who want to sit in the middle and offer the best of both.
Although simple transactions largely take place online, mortgages remain a source of advice. The latest statistics from mortgage lenders and administrators from the Bank of England show that gross mortgage advances have reached peak levels £79.4 billion in Q4 2025This reflects the renewed activity among first-time buyers, movers and refinancing mortgage providers. These pathways provide a powerful opportunity to provide reassurance, guidance and an informed dialogue with the customer.
At the same time, lenders are under pressure to provide these interactions more efficiently and at lower costs. Legacy industry systems weren’t designed for mobile working, flexible formats, or seamless transitions between digital and in-person channels. With these legacy branch systems, it’s no wonder so many lenders don’t see the value or potential of personal networking.
Connecting people, processes and channels
Another strong theme emerging from the industry is the expectation of consistency across channels. Mintel’s UK Mortgage Advice Market Report 2025 shows that this is now over half of consumers feel comfortable completing parts of the mortgage process digitally, personal advice remains highly valued when navigating product complexity and affordability considerations.
This raises the challenge faced by colleagues in the industry, as customers may start their journey online, but expect continuity when they engage in a face-to-face conversation. Outdated, fragmented systems make this difficult and cause increasing duplication of effort, delays and frustration for both staff and borrowers.
Convert ambition into execution
Reshaping the industry has become a priority for many banks and building societies. As recent market data shows, mortgage volumes are returning, customer expectations are rising and physical networks continue to evolve.
Lenders will find success by looking beyond the industry as a legacy constraint and seeing it as a strategic asset that can be improved, expanded and explored, while connecting back and front office operations through digital capabilities.
SBS Digital Branch in action
At the Construction Association Association conference in Edinburgh in April 2026, SBS presents Digital Branch for the first time. Rather than treating the branch as a fixed location, SBS Digital Branch enables lenders to deliver secure, compliant branch services where face-to-face interaction via a tablet is required.
Many associations came by, curious how it could help them reinvent their business locations. These lenders saw the art of the possible with Digital Branch, not as a conceptual model, but as a practical answer to the operational and customer experience challenges facing the industry today.
SBS Digital Branch will help banks and building societies reimagine branch networks and find proactive, new ways to meet customers in person. This could be a flagship branch, a smaller advice centre, a pop-up location, through a business partnership, a school, a workplace, a community location or even where a customer lives.
The SBS Digital Branch conversation continues at SBS Connect London on June 16, where banks and building societies can further demonstrate the product, learn about ongoing product developments and discuss how it fits within their wider transformation strategies.
To learn more about the digital industry revolution, visit our website.
Ben Verdin, Head of UK Lending Product Strategy & Management, SBS