Bank officials across the country say the financial losses resulting from the disruption caused by the undersea cable cuts are huge, though not yet quantified.
Spokespersons for different banks said the disruption caused to telecom services by the undersea cable cuts had a significant impact on their operations.
The spokesman for a Pan-African bank, who spoke on condition of anonymity said, “All the systems are down, but there seems to be some improvements on Friday, compared to Thursday.
“We hear that the telecom operators have resorted to their backup system to back up critical services. Our systems are up but slow. The financial risk is so huge; money is being lost and we don’t even know how much it will be until when services are fully restored.”
The financial risk is so huge; money is being lost and we don’t even know how much it will be until when services are fully restored
The spokesman added that this development requires stakeholders and governments on the African continent to take a critical look at the tech infrastructure in Africa and chart a new way forward.
The Head of Corporate Communications at Unity Bank, Matthew Obiazikwor, said the bank had reached out to customers to inform them about the disruption and alternative channels that they could use to carry out their transactions.
“What we are trying to do now is keep our customers informed about what’s going on and tell them to make use of alternative channels. They can do their transfers on our ATM points. The network supports only minimal services now,” he said.
A banker at Guaranty Trust Bank, who also spoke on condition of anonymity as he is not the official spokesperson, said that the fluctuations affected the bank at intervals.
“A lot of transactions are affected by this disruption,” he lamented.
At a Keystone Bank branch in Garki area of Abuja, customers were urged to hurry up with their transactions as security personnel warned of potential network disruptions.
However, a Keystone Bank official admitted that the problem stemmed from internal bank systems rather than external network providers.
Despite assurances of the bank mobile app’s functionality, some customers encountered obstacles while conducting transactions on it.
In contrast, a banker at Access Bank reassured customers of the resilience of the network infrastructure, explaining that every bank had its service provider and highlighted the importance of having backup systems in place to swiftly address any issues and ensure uninterrupted services.
“Every bank has its service provider. My bank’s network is doing fine. We always have a backup network provider. Once one has an issue, we switch to the next one. So far, we have not suffered any network issues,” the banker noted.
At the UBA in Ibafo, Ogun State, one of our correspondents observed that many customers were stranded at the Automated Teller Machine gallery as only one of the seven points dispensed and soon ran out of cash. Frustrated customers waiting to be allowed into the banking hall spilled over from the canopy provided and complained of the scorching sun.
At an Ecobank branch in the Abule Egba area of Lagos, a customer who managed to get into the banking hall was able to withdraw N10,000 over the counter instead of the N150,000 he had requested.
Meanwhile, telecom subscribers and bank customers have continued to encounter difficulties accessing essential services, including making phone calls, sending messages, and conducting online banking transactions.
