19-7-2024 (MANILA) A widespread international IT outage has sent shockwaves through the Philippine banking sector, leaving customers frustrated and financial institutions scrambling to maintain services. The disruption, which has affected Microsoft-based systems worldwide, has led to grounded flights and suspended telecommunications across the globe, with Philippine banks now joining the list of affected entities.
Social media platforms have been inundated with reports from disgruntled users unable to access online banking services. The scope of the problem became apparent as major financial institutions began issuing statements addressing the situation.
Metrobank, one of the country’s largest banks, acknowledged the impact of the global outage on its operations. In a statement released on Friday, the bank said, “Customers may experience a slowdown or temporary unavailability of some bank products and services through our online channels.” However, they reassured clients that automatic teller machines remained operational, providing a lifeline for those needing to access funds.
Landbank, another major player in the Philippine banking landscape, reported similar issues but claimed to have swiftly resolved its digital disruptions. This quick recovery highlights the varying degrees of impact across different institutions and their ability to respond to such crises.
The Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) also admitted to experiencing system issues, though it stopped short of directly attributing these to the global outage. The bank’s Facebook page stated, “RCBC is currently experiencing technical difficulties affecting RCBC Pulz, RCBC Online Banking and Diskartech, resulting in a slowdown in some of your online banking transactions.”
According to Ookla’s Down Detector, a widely-used service monitoring website, Banco de Oro, another banking giant in the Philippines, has not escaped unscathed. Users have reported problems with popular digital payment platforms Maya and GCash as well, suggesting a wider impact on the country’s fintech ecosystem.
