Regions Accelerates Branch Expansion Plan, Cuts Timeline by Two Years

Regions Financial is speeding up its plan to build 150 new branches across Florida, Georgia and Tennessee as competition heats up in the Southeast.

Regions Financial, a Birmingham-based bank told investors this week it plans to build between 135 and 150 new branches over the next five years, trimming two years off its original timeline. CEO John Turner laid out the accelerated strategy Wednesday at an investor conference. The bank initially gave itself seven years to get the job done. Not anymore. Turner said the decision to speed things up came down from one thing: competition. "It was a seven-year plan, now it's five," Turner said. "And it might be four if we can acquire properties faster.” The new branches will cluster in three states where Regions sees the most growth Florida, Georgia and Tennessee. Turner called out Miami and Nashville specifically as metros that will get several new locations. The numbers break down like this: 16 to 20 branches in Florida, six to 10 in the Atlanta area, and 12 to 16 across Tennessee.

Here's one thing about this expansion, though. Region isn’t actually planning to grow its total branch count. The banks will likely close about as many locations as it opens. Turner said that's about responding to population shifts and combining two or three older branches into one newer, better-located spot. The reason for the hurry? Bigger banks are moving in. JPMorgan Chase already has 14 branches in Alabama and wants 35 there by 2030. Bank of America, PNC, Fifth Third and Huntington are all plotting new locations across Regions' turf. Local players like Truist aren't sitting still either. Turner put it plainly: "Competition is definitely intensifying." 

Regions plans to fight back with something the bigger banks can't claim a hometown identity. The bank has a 30% market share in its strongest markets, and Turner said the goal is to chip away at the 70% of customers who currently bank somewhere else. "We're always looking at branch applications across our footprint, so we know who's opening what branches, when and where," Turner said. If Regions sees that one of its customers also has a credit card with JPMorgan, "we know to target our focus on that customer, because we believe that's who they're going to try to win."  The $159 billion-asset lender said branching in markets where it already has a presence pays off. "Entering de novo markets, where we have a very limited presence, are much more challenging," Turner noted.