IT’S Business as usual for the Portland branch of the ANZ Bank, at least for now.

ANZ has made the decision to retain the branch, which was previously announced to close later this year.

Staff and community members were made aware of the good news, although there is still no firm plans as to whether the branch will retain the same hours or if the hours will be restricted.

As part of the Suncorp Bank acquisition, ANZ has made a commitment to maintain their regional footprint for a minimum of three years.

“The ANZ Portland team are looking forward to continuing supporting customers with their face-to-face banking needs, “an ANZ spokesperson said.

“Our dedicated customer care team will be phoning our customers that they have previously contacted around the closure to advise of the decision to continue operating at this location.

“Our relationship managers will be contacting our business customers to advise of this change and will continue help to these customers with their specific needs,” they said.

If the branch does eventually close, the question remains as to what happens to the historical collection of documents and items that the branch has on display directly related to Portland’s settlement.

ANZs forebear, the Union Bank of Australasia, was the first bank to open a branch in Portland on July 20, 1846 in Bentinck Street.