LAHORE – An inordinate delay in upgrade of Soneri Bank Limited’s online system following a major malfunction has left thousands of customers in the lurch.
Soneri Bank shut down its online banking system on April 20, informing the customers that all their banking services including ATMs, Debit Cards, Internet and Mobile banking would be available on April 23 only after system maintenance.
However, the bank’s customers are still unable to withdraw any cash or avail internet banking since last Monday.
Customers said they are yet to be notified about the delay and the time when the problem will be fixed.
“This is very unprofessional of the (Soneri) bank, which has failed to fix the problem in given time,” said an accountant from Lahore.
“I have been unable to withdraw my own money, which I need for paying medical bills of my sick mother,” Omair Hanif told Daily Pakistan while sharing his ordeal.
Hanif, who has been a loyal customer of Soneri Bank for last six years, also expressed his annoyance over a communication gap between the bank and the customers. “The bank charges Rs90+tax/month (Rs114 approx.) for its SMS (Short Message Service) but I have not received a single message since April 23,” he added.
When contacted by telephone, the bank’s technical department stated “we are facing issue during upgrading our system and we cannot provide any time frame when it will be done”.
Soneri Bank is a mid-size bank of Pakistan having about over 260 branches countrywide.
