Quarter of Barclays branches could close as bank tests plans to open counters in Asda supermarkets The bank is reportedly drawing up plans to shut 400 of its 1,600 branches It could replace some with smaller sites in Asda supermarkets Many of the bank's branches are in rural villages and towns across Britain By Peter Campbell, City Correspondent Barclays could close a quarter of its high street branches, it emerged last night. The bank was reported to be drawing up plans to shut 400 of its 1,600 branches. The move would be a blow for millions of its customers, many of whom are elderly and rely on their local branches to cash cheques and deposit savings. Barclays bank was reported to be drawing up plans to shut 400 of its 1,600 branches It comes just months after the group axed 1,700 front-line staff, claiming its customers used mobile phones for banking rather than going into branches. It is thought Barclays could replace some of its lost branches with smaller sites in Asda supermarkets, a model it is currently testing. But its current network of 1,600 branches, many of which are in rural villages and towns across Britain, would be significantly slimmed down under the plans. Barclays chief executive Antony Jenkins is expected to set out a series of five-year targets for the scandal-stricken lender at the bank's results next month. His announcement is also expected to include measures to improve trust in the bank, as well as axing hundreds of staff from its "casino" investment banking arm. Although Barclays refused to confirm the figure last night, the Financial Times reported that Mr Jenkins is planning to announce that 400 branches will be closed. Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds are both expected to follow suit with widespread closures as the sector moves away from high street outlets and towards internet banking. Lloyds has committed to maintaining its 2,200-strong national network until the end of the year, but may consider closures after that. Co-op Bank is looking to close a sixth of its high street stores, shedding about 50 branches as it struggles to raise more money to plug a £1.5billion black hole in its finances. Plan: It is thought Barclays could replace some of its lost branches with smaller sites in Asda supermarkets, a model it is currently testing Mr Jenkins is trying to make Barclays a "good corporate citizen." Its previous chief executive Bob Diamond was forced to resign last year over the Libor scandal in which Barclays traders rigged the £3trillion-a-day rate. The group was also fined £280million last year for rigging energy prices in the United States. The bank was also criticised for releasing the details of multi-million pound bonuses for its top bankers on the day of the Chancellor's Budget to try to minimise publicity. News of the threatened Barclays closures came as Lloyds was accused of betraying small firms after sacking hundreds of business advisers and leaving employers to get lending advice by phone. The taxpayer-backed bank will axe half of its 1,000 travelling small business relationship managers, hitting up to 120,000 firms. From May, they will be left relying on phone banking or the internet to get in touch with the lender. Lloyds, which is in the process of shedding 15,000 staff overall over several years, is already one of the worst culprits for choking off lending to small firms, despite taking part in a Government scheme designed to boost loans. Critics said the latest move was further evidence that the lender had turned its back on the country's smallest enterprises. Lloyds defended the move, saying that smaller companies had "less complex needs" than larger firms.