With the rise of online banking there is less pressure on physical branches to be open and staff can take vacations a bit more often and without thinking about the customers, or at least that is how it is perceived. That could not be further from the truth and customers should still be very ware of the banking calendar to ensure that all their payments and needs are covered before a national holiday or a banking holiday derails their plans.
Most major banks like Wells Fargo, Bank of America, Chase, etc. will be closing for the day next Thursday, June 19. It will not be just banks, other government entities like Social Security offices, Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), State and municipal courts, Public Libraries, stock exchanges, the United States Postal Service (USPS), Public Schools and garbage collection services will also be suspended.
But why will these services be suspended on June 19? Well, that will be due to the commemoration of Juneteenth, also known as African American Independence Day.
Juneteenth and the effect of national holidays on banks
African American Independence Day commemorates the abolition of slavery in the country. Despite the process being a long one and having many dates that could be used to commemorate this milestone, June 19 was chosen because of that date in 1865, General Gordon Granger announced the abolition of slavery in Galveston, Texas. This was an important milestone as it was the fulfilment of the Emancipation Proclamation signed by Abraham Lincoln more than two years earlier.
Other states had their own dates, but Texas was the last state standing and thus after they fell, the Abolition of slavery could be considered official in all the United States territory. The state of Texas has been celebrating Juneteenth since 1980, when it was recognized as a state holiday, and it expanded throughout the country as more and more states joined in the recognition. By 2008, more than half of the states celebrated this milestone date and in 2021 it became an official national holiday thanks to President Joe Biden’s administration.
While it might seem like an inconsequential thing, just adding another holiday, some people tend to forget that it is there and make arrangements based on believing that services will be open and fully operational. And while bank branches may not be a necessity for you, it is not just branches that close down it is the entire office. That is not as much of a problem when the holiday is only a state holiday, but now that it is a national holiday it does not matter where your bank is based, they will be unable to process your request.
This is what is called a “banking blackout,” and they are a lot less common than we think. They only tend to happen on very limited occasions, and usually go unnoticed because most customers are having a good time with their families and do not need any other services than cannot be provided by an ATM (which banks take special care to stock up just in case). But Juneteenth is still not an established holiday and many people may not have plans to be active or surrounded by family, so they may want to use the date to catch up on admin, which will not be an option.
Some private businesses and services may be open, so you can at least try to go shopping, but if you truly have some pressing banking matters to take care of, we suggest doing so on June 18 or resigning yourself to waiting until June 23, as many people will take advantage of the fact that June 19 falls on a Thursday and will likely take Friday off as well.