A Major Bank Is Closing 75 Locations, Leaving People With Fewer Options

In early June 2026, just months after Fifth Third bank announced its $10.9 billion merger with Comerica, the company announced it would be shutting down 75 of its locations in Michigan by early September. Of the locations closing, 55 are Comerica branches, while the other 20 are Fifth Third branches. This move is largely intended to reduce redundancy throughout the state, as Fifth Third claims that most of the locations being shut down are within 1 mile of another branch.

After the closures, there will actually be more Fifth Third locations in Michigan than ever: Before Fifth Third and Comerica merged, the bank only had 163 locations within the state. Come September, that figure is slated to increase to 227. The reason for this increase is that Fifth Third will be converting some existing Comerica branches into Fifth Third locations in addition to shutting down others over Labor Day weekend.

Unlike the first bank closure of 2026, which cost millions of dollars, these branch-specific closures are largely being framed as an upward trajectory for Fifth Third. According to Bank Branch Locator, Comerica and Fifth Third have the third and fourth highest branch counts of any bank in Michigan, as of June 2026. However, after the closures and conversions, Fifth Third could take Chase's place in the No. 2 slot — leaving Huntington Bank as its only serious competitor in the state.

Much of the messaging Fifth Third has delivered about its Comerica merger, and this round of closures in Michigan, suggests that the company is growth oriented. However, in an era where even larger banks are shutting down branches throughout the country, there are several factors that suggest that Fifth Third might not be as healthy as it wants to project. For instance, in addition to the 75 locations shutting down in Michigan, at least six other Fifth Third branches are slated for closure in 2026. What's more, the company also shut down locations in multiple states throughout 2025. This included a large branch in Cincinnati, Ohio — a move that severely impacted disrupted local customers.

Additionally, despite recent claims that Fifth Third will only lay off employees as a last resort as it proceeds with branch closures, the company has already alerted the State of Michigan's Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity that it would be laying off 502 people between July and November 2026. So, despite the fact that Fifth Third announced that it was the ninth largest bank operating in the U.S. in February 2026, only time will tell whether it will stay that way or if these closures are a sign of other things to come.