The municipal plenary session of La Baronia de Rialb approved the decision after confirming that the mobile office had not served any user for banking transactions throughout its operational period. This situation occurred despite the service being initially requested to benefit the local population.
Council sources explained that the proximity to Ponts, located just over two kilometers away, and the lack of shops or services in the municipality, mean that residents use shopping trips to go directly to the nearest bank office.
“"As no operations were registered, we have decided to dispense with mobile banking in this municipality, which is very scattered and where the implementation has not been effective."
The Ministry of Economy confirmed that La Baronia's withdrawal is not an isolated case. In the province of Lleida, the municipalities of Clariana de Cardener, in Solsonès, and La Granyanella, in Segarra, have also dropped the service, as the service model does not fit well in highly dispersed municipalities.
Currently, mobile banking serves 116 municipalities in Lleida, 98 of which have never had a traditional bank branch. Up until last November, the itinerant bank received 1,590 visits and attended a total of 4,332 people across the region.
