Thousands of HSBC customers have reported that they have been unable to access its online and mobile banking services on one of the busiest online shopping days of the year as consumers swoop on Black Friday retail deals.
More than 4,000 customers have reported that they have been unable to access their accounts via the HSBC app on Friday, according to Downdetector, which tracks and collates website outages and complaints.
“We understand some customers are having trouble accessing banking services as usual right now,” HSBC wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “We’re investigating this as a matter of urgency and will share an update as soon as possible.”
In a subsequent post, the bank said that services via its apps and online had been affected by the outage, as well as online card purchases.
“We’re working hard to restore mobile and online banking service, and the authorising of online card purchases via the app,” the company said. “We’re really sorry for the inconvenience.”
With 24 November being the last Friday of the month, it will also be payday for some customers. One X user posted in response to HSBC UK’s message: “Literally the worst timing ever. People got paid and have bills to pay.”
Another wrote: “Got to move some money so I can buy some Black Friday purchases (that I don’t need) Maybe it’s a sign!”
Users accessing the HSBC mobile app were being shown a message on Friday morning saying that the bank was “performing a system upgrade to bring you a better banking experience”.
A spokeswoman for the bank said that the “disruption is the result of an internal system issue”.
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HSBC, which has about 15 million customers in the UK and also owns the online-only bank First Direct, has previously announced that it would close a total of 114 physical branches across the country this year.
By the end of this year, the high street bank, which said the closures were in part down to customers making the shift to online banking, will have 327 branches nationwide – down from 590 in 2021.
