Raiffeisen Bank has opened the first underground branches in Kharkiv and Dnipro

Raiffeisen Bank has opened its first underground branches in Kharkiv and Dnipro. They operate on the basis of existing branches and serve customers when an air raid alert is declared in the region. Customer service is available through a separate entrance leading to the underground premises.

In Kharkiv, the branch is located at: 11 Novhorodska St.

The Yuvileine branch serves customers at: urban-type settlement Slobozhanske, 9a Slobozhanska St.

The first underground bank branches appeared in cities located near the fighting and constantly subjected to shelling. The number and duration of air raid alerts in these cities are elevated, customers have limited access to offline services and frequent problems with stable connectivity. Despite the difficult situation, entrepreneurs continue to work in these cities, and they also need constant access to banking operations.

This format of branch operation will help provide banking services without interruption under wartime conditions. It not only protects customers and employees but also helps preserve the economic stability of the regions.

“Underground workplaces make it possible to ensure continuity of customer service even during air raid alerts. This is especially important in cities that are constantly shelled, because of which branches are forced to stop work on the surface for quite a long time. The uninterrupted operation of branches makes it possible to support local business and ensure access to financial services. This, in turn, helps minimize economic losses for entrepreneurs and the population in these regions. It is also extremely important that the new initiative creates safer working conditions for employees, allows them to work with more confidence and experience less stress,” — comments Artem Nidzelskyi, director for retail business at the retail business center of the bank's South-Eastern region.

The underground branches provide all the banking services that traditional branches do, including opening accounts and deposits, lending, customer consultations and cash desk transactions.

Raiffeisen Bank notes that this step will help support economic stability in frontline regions, preserve customer trust and provide a sense of stability and security when using banking services, which is especially important in wartime. In the future, the bank plans to open separate underground branches in Kharkiv and Dnipro and other frontline cities.