CASTERTON is at the coalface of the latest Federal Government enquiry into the country’s banking sector, as one of a growing number of communities with no access to a ‘local’ bank branch.

A Senate committee has been appointed to investigate closures of bank branches in regional Australia, including the reasons given for closures, the economic and welfare impacts of bank closures on customers and regional communities, the effect of bank closures or the removal of face-to-face cash services on access to cash and the effectiveness of government banking statistics capturing and reporting regional service levels, including the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority's authorised deposit-taking institutions points of presence data.