Doors at NAB's new city mall branch always unlocked

The branch, which has moved from its previous location in the mall to the ground floor of the Langs Corner development, opened the door for business on Friday morning.

And that door will stay open, because the ATMs have been moved inside.

There is an internal security screen that can be pulled out to close off the rest of the branch office space, limiting access to only the ATM area.

The entry to the ATMs is via the front door, which will always be open.

NAB retail executive Tony Story said the internal placement of the ATMs would help staff assist customers.

"The main thing it helps us with is when we are open, is being able to to educate customers on what their options are," Mr Story said.

"If a customer coming in to do something they didn't realise they could do at the ATM and they've waited to come in during business hours, we can educate them.

"We can show them how they could do it 24-7, which is good for them. If the ATM's outside, then you're taking the customer back outside to show them how to do something, which is what we had to do up there [at the old branch].

With the door open 24 hours a day, it does create security issues - and the need to stop people deciding it is somewhere warm to spend the night.

"You'll see a lot of cameras in here and there are actually detection systems for if people are setting up camp to spend the evening here," he said.

"There is an alarm system that will activate to keep the area safe for customers to come in and out. It detects the lack of motion [and] it will start with a gentle noise and then it will get louder. It's essentially to make it uncomfortable to stay here for that period of time."

Mr Story said the staffing numbers remained the same as in the old branch further west in the mall, but the number of counters where tellers traditionally operated has been reduced.

He said that was because of the changes in the way people banked; with more transactions happening online or via EFTPOS, the need for cash had declined.

Instead, there are meeting rooms and a number of iPads set up around the branch, where staff can assist customers.

In an era where bank branches always seem to be closing, it does seem usual to see a new one opening.

Mr Story said there was "definitely still a future for physical branches" in busy CBD areas, but became more of a challenge in smaller towns and suburbs where fewer customers were going in.

"People's banking is changing, we have more access to banking than ever in the palm of our hands," he said.

"You can bank from your couch in a way you didn't used to be able to.

"Traditionally a lot of branch use has been for cash transactions but as people use cash less, they use the branch less. We can make this [branch in Wollongong] work because there are plenty of other services and more complex things - whether it's personal lending or home loans - we can offer here."