Customers withdraw more than available balance as bank experiences technical glitch

Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE), the biggest bank in the country, will have to find away to recoup large sums of money withdrawn by customers after a "systems glitch".

It is reported that more than $40 million was withdrawn or transferred to other banks within hours of the system failure.

The system failure allowed customers to take out more cash than they had in their accounts.

How the system glitch led to withdrawals

It all started on Saturday, March 16, 2024, when customers discovered early on Saturday that they could take out more cash than they had in their accounts at CBE.

More than 38 million people hold accounts at CBE, which was established 82 years ago.

A student told BBC that he was first informed of the system glitch at around 01:00 local time (22:00 GMT).

"I was told that it is possible to withdraw large amounts from ATMs, or transfer the money using the bank's app."

Central Bank wants customers to return the money

In a statement, Ethiopia's central bank, President Abe Sano explained that the system glitch occurred during "maintenance and inspection activities"

According to Sano, anyone returning money will not be charged with a criminal offence.

CBN orders banks to restrict accounts without BVN, NIN

In related news, Legit.ng reported that the CBN directed that all funded accounts without a Bank Verification Number and National Identification Number be restricted, with no further transactions permitted.

This was disclosed in a circular to all commercial, merchant, non-interest and payment service banks and other financial institutions and mobile money operators.