Postbank, the joint venture between An Post and the French bank BNP Paribas, which operates in 1,000 post offices, is to close by the end of the year. The move will mean up to 150 of its 260 staff are likely to lose their jobs. Staff were only told about the closure yesterday afternoon and no discussions have taken place on any redundancy deal. Postbank, which has some of the most competitive banking products in the market, is just the latest of a string of banks to shut up operations. Last year, Ulster Bank said it was doing away with its First Active brand. Halifax-Bank of Scotland (Ireland) announced earlier this month that it was closing its 44 retail branches. Permanent TSB and National Irish Bank are both laying off workers and shutting branches, while EBS and Irish Nationwide are to be merged in a move that is expected to mean branch closures and job losses.