Spanish pensioner gathers 600,000 signatures opposing online banking

A Spanish retiree presented a petition with more than 600,000 signatures to the country's central bank on Tuesday as part of a campaign against banks' growing use of digital services.

Carlos San Juan, 78, gave his petition the title, "I'm old, but I'm not an idiot" in a show of protest.

He presented the petition to the Economy Ministry and the Central Bank in Madrid.

San Juan, a retired doctor, is calling for Spanish banks provide staffed services to older people in particular, rather than channeling them into online services, as generally, the elderly are less at ease with online banking.

"This will be a difficult task," he was quoted as saying by Europa Press news agency.

Spain's banks, like many others worldwide, are shuttering branches and scaling back the times when face-to-face services are available, prompting San Juan to call for "urgent measures."

Digital divide

Growing use of digital services is not only affecting banks, El País newspaper reported.

Around a third of Spaniards feel restricted in terms of their ability to access services, jobs or state aid due to the digital divide, surveys show.

The government promised to lobby the banks to make staff available for older people, saying the industry recognised the problem and had vowed to remedy it.