Blairmore latest Alberta community to lose bank branch — a trend seen across Canada

Valerie Robinson has been a CIBC customer for almost 30 years. Now, that’s coming to an end.

She lives and does her banking in the Crownest Pass town of Blairmore, Alta..

The bank notified the community of 1,500 in September that the local branch will close on Feb. 5. The nearest other CIBC branch is about 40 kilometres away in Pincher Creek.

CIBC will remove its ATM in Blairmore too.

Robinson is worried about locals’ reduced access to cash: the currency of the small transactions that fund the life of the town.

“All of our fundraising, like with the service groups, curling, sports activities for kids — you're not going to have a kid going around with a debit machine to sell their raffle tickets, you know.”