The State Bank of India (SBI) has informed its customers that several banking services will be temporarily unavailable on April 1, 2025, due to the bank's Annual Closing activities. This scheduled downtime is essential for finalizing financial records, reconciling accounts, and ensuring a smooth transition into the new financial year. Customers are advised to plan their transactions accordingly to prevent any inconvenience.
The announcement was made via an official post on X (formerly known as Twitter). According to information provided on the SBI website, services such as Internet Banking, Retail, Merchant, Yono Lite, CINB, Yono Business Web & Mobile App, YONO, and UPI will not be accessible between 1:00 PM and 4:00 PM IST on April 1, 2025, due to these Annual Closing activities. However, UPI Lite and ATM services will remain available during this period.
In its social media post, SBI stated, "Due to Annual Closing activity, the services of Internet Banking, Retail, Merchant, Yono Lite, CINB, Yono Business Web & Mobile App, YONO, UPI will not be available tentatively between 13:00 Hrs IST and 16:00 Hrs IST on 1st April 2025. During this period, services of UPI Lite and ATM will be available." This notice comes at a crucial time as banks are preparing for the new financial year.
Data from Downdetector indicated a significant rise in complaints regarding SBI's mobile banking services within the hours leading up to the downtime, peaking around 1:36 PM. Approximately 64% of the complaints were linked to mobile banking issues, with 33% specifically related to fund transfer problems, and 3% pertaining to ATM services. Customers took to social media to express their frustrations over failed transactions and delays in payment processing.
In response to the chaos, SBI advised customers to consider using alternative bank accounts for smoother payment transactions. For small transactions, UPI Lite can be utilized without requiring a UPI PIN. Additionally, ATM-cum-debit cards are available for making payments.
The commencement of the new financial year in India on April 1, 2025, signifies a critical period for banks, as they finalize their books, prepare financial reports, conduct audits, and update interest rates and loan balances for the upcoming fiscal year. During this time, both public and private sector banks undergo this closure process.
On the same day, SBI faced a major technical glitch that compounded the issues for customers relying on digital banking services. Reports surfaced that customers experienced difficulties in accessing their accounts, transferring funds, and using ATMs. The timing of the outage could not have been worse, as businesses and individuals depend heavily on seamless digital transactions at the end of the financial year.
According to Downdetector, complaints regarding SBI's digital services surged between 11:00 AM and 11:30 AM IST, with 64% of complaints related to mobile banking failures, 33% of users facing issues with fund transfers, and 3% linked to ATM malfunctions. The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) also issued a statement addressing concerns about transaction failures, reassuring users that the UPI system remains fully operational and that they are working closely with banks to resolve the issue.
NPCI's official post read, "Today, due to financial year closing, some of the banks are facing intermittent transaction declines. The UPI system is working fine, and we are working with the concerned banks for necessary redressal." This reassurance comes as customers express their frustrations over the disruptions.
Several factors may have contributed to the SBI outage, including the implementation of new UPI rules effective from April 1, which require active mobile numbers for transactions. Additionally, increased transaction volumes due to the financial year-end may have led to system overloads, further complicating the situation.
This is not the first time SBI customers have encountered such issues. Earlier in March, customers faced difficulties accessing UPI and mobile banking services for over four hours due to technical issues. On that occasion, SBI issued a statement indicating that the technical issues with the SBI UPI application had been resolved and that services were functioning normally thereafter.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has been pressing banks to ensure seamless connectivity and invest adequately in backend systems to prevent such outages. The RBI has also indicated that it will take stern actions against entities that fail to comply with these standards.
As the situation unfolds, customers are left grappling with the disruptions during a critical time for financial transactions. The reliance on digital banking services underscores the need for robust infrastructure and contingency plans to handle unexpected outages.
In summary, while SBI has taken steps to mitigate the inconvenience by keeping UPI Lite and ATM services operational, the combined impact of the Annual Closing activities and technical glitches has left many customers frustrated and seeking alternatives for their banking needs during this pivotal time.
