HSBC is the first bank to agree to delay the closure of a last branch in town until alternative banking arrangements are in place.
A number of communities won't spend months bankless while a new banking hub is opened or a cash deposit service is introduced because of the bank's move.
Last year, the banks agreed to fund the setting up of hubs community banks in towns where the last branch was closing and an independent assessor cash machine network called Link decided that one needed to ensure continued access to cash.
The hubs roll out has been protracted because Cash Access UK, who installed them, has struggled to find suitable sites. The average time for a hub to come on stream is more than a year. So far, only four have opened while 43 more are promised.
The MoS highlighted last month that HSBC was due to close its Oakham branch in June. This would have left the town and the wider county of Rutland without a bank.
Link recommended a hub for Oakham, but it isn't close to getting off the ground. The HSBC said it would pause the Oakham closure until a hub is in place. It also said it would suspend closings in Ripley, North Yorkshire and Colwyn Bay, Conwy until cash deposit services recommended by Link were established.
HSBC says that closing a branch can be difficult for some customers and the wider community, especially when it is the last in the area and there is a gap between its closure and a new hub opening.
Wherever a hub is recommended and we have a closure, we will pause it for up to 12 months to allow Cash Access UK time to develop a hub.