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BB server still down, interbank platform offline
Four days after a major power disruption, Bangladesh Bank’s server has yet to be fully normal, officials said.
They said the online platform for the Interbank Data Processing (ITDP) system, which facilitates mutual exchanges between banks, remains offline due to the server malfunction.
A Bangladesh Bank spokesperson said relevant departments are working to resolve the issue. While several critical services have been restored, some essential functions will require more time to resume.
The server failure occurred suddenly last Thursday morning following a power outage and voltage fluctuation.
The bank’s system failed when the automatic generator did not activate due to a technical error, causing the Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) backup to expire and leaving the server room completely without power.
The incident disrupted crucial services, including international payment settlements and card-based transactions.
Arif Hossain Khan, Executive Director and spokesperson of Bangladesh Bank, said the situation is improving, though the ITDP platform is still offline.
“The NPSB (National Payment Switch of Bangladesh), RTGS (Real-Time Gross Settlement), and batch services have been reactivated. However, the ITDP is yet to be fully restored. Work is underway, and we expect the entire system to normalize very soon,” he said.
Hossain said intensified technical monitoring will continue until all services are fully functional. Banks have already informed customers about the temporary suspension of the NPSB service and apologised for the inconvenience.
Central Bank officials assured that no money is at risk due to the sudden shutdown, although the unexpected disruption did cause transaction delays.
Officials pointed out that abrupt shutdowns causes more delays than planned ones, which usually utilise alternative servers.
Since last Thursday was the final day for the settlement of many transactions, the outage may result in penalties in some cases, reports UNB.
Complete power loss shutting down the central bank’s server is a rare occurrence, according to officials.
While transaction disruptions are not new—previous incidents include a severed BTCL line in April 2021 and two server failures in 2023—a total shutdown due to power failure is recent, they said.