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SBI Net Banking Downtime: What Happened on April 1, 2025?
State Bank of India (SBI) customers experienced disruptions to online banking and UPI services on April 1, 2025. Downdetector reported a significant surge in complaints, peaking around 1:36 pm. This outage impacted many users during a crucial period as banks were closed for year-end accounting.
SBI's Explanation and Planned Downtime
SBI acknowledged the issues via a post on X (formerly Twitter), attributing the disruption to planned annual closing activities. The bank stated that certain digital services, including internet banking, YONO, and UPI, were unavailable between 1 pm and 4 pm IST. During this time, only UPI Lite and ATM services remained operational. This scheduled downtime is necessary for banks to finalize financial records and reconcile accounts.
The Impact of the Outage
Downdetector data indicated that approximately 64% of complaints were related to mobile banking, 33% to fund transfers, and 3% to ATM services. The outage caused widespread inconvenience for customers trying to conduct transactions during a busy financial period. Earlier in March, SBI also experienced a similar, albeit longer, outage due to unspecified technical issues.
What Services Were Available?
While the majority of SBI's digital services were offline for the scheduled maintenance, customers could still access UPI Lite (for transactions up to â‚ą1000) and ATMs. SBI stressed the availability of these alternative channels to minimize disruption.
Why the Downtime?
The downtime was essential for the bank to complete year-end accounting procedures, ensuring accurate financial records and a smooth transition into the new financial year. This is a standard practice across many financial institutions.
Conclusion
While the scheduled maintenance window was short and SBI provided alternative options, the disruptions underscore the reliance on digital banking services and the importance of planning for potential outages. It's advisable to check official SBI channels for updates on service availability in the future.
