How GTBank’s tech upgrade triggered 10 days of chaos, frustration for customers
GTBank
Published By: Kazeem Ugbodaga
By Kazeem Ugbodaga
For Guaranteed Trust Bank (GTBank) customers, the past 10 days have been nothing short of a nightmare. The bank, known for its extensive customer base, recently carried out a system upgrade, leaving many users in frustration and disarray.
GTBank had informed customers that the upgrade would occur between Friday, 11th October, and Monday, 14th October 2024. In a notice, the bank announced its transition to a new and advanced Finacle Core Banking Application System, promising improved customer experiences through enhanced technology.
According to the bank, the upgrade was scheduled to start on Friday, October 11, with all branches closing early at 12:00 p.m. that day. Branches were to remain closed throughout the weekend, reopening at 9:00 a.m. on Monday, October 14.
However, things didn’t go as planned. Despite patiently awaiting the 14th of October, customers faced mounting frustrations throughout the week.
They were unable to transfer funds to other banks, nor could they receive money from other institutions. Transfers to GTBank accounts from other banks were delayed for days, with many customers complaining of trapped funds.
While the bank issued apologies and attempted to reassure customers, complaints continued to pour in. The situation became a source of widespread anger and disappointment.
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After 10 days, operations gradually returned to normal, although some customers are still experiencing issues. The GTBank mobile app, in particular, remains problematic for several users.
On X (formerly Twitter), frustrated customers voiced their grievances. One user, KingKay, tweeted on Tuesday:
“What @gtbank is doing can lead to loss of lives… People’s livelihoods are being withheld for weeks because they bank with GTB… Hospital bills, salaries, money for feeding… all these are being withheld for weeks because of one very stupid upgrade!!! @cenbank.”
Okoh Paul Okoh expressed his frustration: “For your peace of mind and safety! Do boycott @gtbank and @cenbank keep ignoring walai you all will never end well! Now they have changed the name narrative.”
Another user, Mukhtharr, tweeted: “Something is wrong with GTBank. So I made a transfer to one Emmanuel, it failed but I was debited, I request a reversal and for 11 days no response. Yesterday, I got a reversal in the form of a transfer from a personal account. What’s happening? @gtbank_help.”
Joseph Akinsanya also voiced concerns: “@gtbank @cenbank I sent 10,000 on two occasions on Saturday, 19th of this month. The transaction was not successful, yet you debited me 20,000. Kindly help me out with this, I have DM’d you already.”
In another tweet, Mr. El-Bonga demanded accountability: “Dear @cenbank, what are you doing regarding the egregious incompetence demonstrated by GTBank and the likes of Zenith? Customers deserve to be treated with respect. They deserve to be compensated. There should be punishment for ineptitude.”
