In recent years, the banking sector has undergone a profound transformation driven by the widespread diffusion of digital technologies, which has progressively reshaped service delivery models and reduced the role of physical branches. This shift has been accompanied by a significant contraction of branch networks across Europe, raising concerns about its implications for access to financial services, particularly in less advantaged territorial contexts. Against this background, this study investigates the social costs associated with the digitalization of banking services by analyzing how branch network contraction affects spatial accessibility across different territorial contexts. The empirical analysis focuses on a regional case study in Italy, Emilia-Romagna, characterized by a high degree of heterogeneity in socio-economic and digital conditions. Accessibility is assessed through two complementary dimensions: the availability of branches within given distances and the proximity to the nearest facility. The analysis is conducted for three reference years (2010, 2017, and 2024), enabling a detailed comparison of the evolution of accessibility patterns across urban, suburban, and rural areas. The results show that, although branch closures have occurred throughout the region, their impact has been significantly more pronounced in suburban and rural areas, where both availability and proximity indicators reveal a marked deterioration of accessibility conditions. Building on this evidence, the study further explores the relationship between physical accessibility and digital development, showing that the areas most affected by the reduction in physical infrastructure are also characterized by weaker digital conditions. In these contexts, digital channels do not adequately compensate for the loss of physical access, leading to a cumulative effect of disadvantage. Overall, the findings suggest that the ongoing digital transformation of the banking sector entails non-negligible social costs, as it disproportionately affects more vulnerable populations and contributes to widening territorial disparities in access to financial services. The study highlights the need to account for spatial and digital inequalities when designing policies aimed at promoting financial inclusion in the context of digital transition.