By Kim Jae-won
Nonghyup is in hot water over its risk management capability as its electronic networks have been out of order since Tuesday afternoon.
The state-run lender resumed some of its financial services through its branches, but its online banking services were still unavailable as of Wednesday afternoon. Customers could only withdraw or deposit money, and make foreign exchange transactions at its outlets, as well as other lenders’ automated teller machines (ATMs).
Nonghyup said some problems in its intermediate computer servers crippled the whole electronic system, but could not give the exact cause of the incident.
“We are examining whether it was a mistake by an IT employee or an error in the computer program itself,” said a Nonghyup official. “We will announce the results later.”
Customers showed their anger and frustration against the lender asking it to solve the problems as soon as possible.
“I cannot wait anymore. I don’t have time. Resume the financial services,” said a customer who visited the lender’s Myeongdong branch in downtown Seoul.
The nation’s financial watchdog dispatched three IT specialists to the lender to find out the reasons for the shutdown and collect report damages suffered by customers.
An official from the Financial Supervisory Service said there were some problems in the management system.
This is not first time that the lender’s computer servers have been out of order. About 2,000 ATMs shutdown for four hours on Feb. 6, 2010 after computer servers of the lender failed.
