Bank of America looks to open new branch in the city

Bank of America plans to open on the ground floor of the Ascend RVA apartment tower at 1600 W. Broad St. (BizSense file photo)

Bank of America looks to be following through on its previously stated desire to open at least one new branch within Richmond city limits.

Documents were recently filed showing the banking giant is planning a retail location at 1600 W. Broad St. on the ground floor of the 12-story Ascend RVA apartment tower.

It would be the bank’s first new branch in the city since it closed its downtown outpost at 1111 E. Main St. in the office tower that bears its name last year.

The new Broad Street spot would give it a prominent frontage along the VCU-anchored stretch of Broad and would also follow at least two competitors into the nearby area. Both Virginia Credit Union and Fulton Bank opened Broad Street-fronting branches a little further west in Scott’s Addition in recent years.

Bank of America would occupy the corner storefront in the Ascend building.

Bofa would be the first commercial tenant to open in the Ascend tower, which was completed about two years ago by Minnesota-based The Opus Group and California-based Balboa Real Estate Partners.

It’s unclear whether the new branch would replace or add to BofA’s nearby location at 2101 W. Broad St.

The bank declined to comment on details related to the new branch, other than to say in a prepared statement: “We are always looking for ways to optimize our financial center network.”

As of last week, it didn’t appear as though work was underway on the bank’s space in the Ascend building.

Little Diversified Architecture Consulting is handling design work on the project, according to city records. Infinity Engineering Group is also listed in the plans. The contractor is listed as the building’s owner.

Upon closing its downtown branch last year, Bank of America said it intended to continue to expand its presence in the region, including in the city, though it didn’t specify locations at the time.

It has since built and opened two from-scratch locations: 12200 Bridgewood Crossing Drive in Midlothian and 5000 W. Broad St. across from Willow Lawn in Henrico.

The bank also in the planning stage for a from-scratch branch at 1401 Eastridge Road, a triangular-shaped lot across Parham Road from Regency.

Despite having fewer branches in town than some of its competitors, BofA has emphasized its strong presence in the Richmond market, particularly its status as the dominant player for local deposits.

“Bank of America is the deposit market share leader in Richmond, with approximately 42% market share. And our market share has continued to climb over the last decade. Deposits have nearly doubled in Richmond during this period, from $12.5 billion in 2014 to now more than $24 billion,” it said in its statement.

Its nearest Richmond-market deposit rivals are Truist and Wells Fargo at $8.4 billion and $8 billion, respectively.

BofA currently has 17 branches locally. Truist and Wells Fargo has 43 and 40, respectively.

BofA also said earlier this year it plans to spend $20 million in the next two years to update its existing local branch network, including the possibility of building new locations to replace aging outposts nearby.

That’s after spending $20 million over the past five years updating the interiors of its other 15 branches in the region.

The post Bank of America looks to open new branch in the city appeared first on Richmond BizSense.