Digital Blackout: Bangladesh Card Payments Resume After Two-Day Sabotage Crisis

Maksuda Lisa (Dhaka Bureau) Card and ATM services across Bangladesh resumed late on Tuesday following an unprecedented two-day digital blackout that left millions of citizens stranded without access to cash withdrawals, retail payments, or even basic balance checks. The crisis, triggered by allegations of sabotage by a sanctioned Russian software supplier within the nation’s main payment network, has once again laid bare the fragility and security vulnerabilities of modern financial infrastructure in an increasingly digital world. The Blackout and Sudden Paralysis Information Technology Consultants Ltd (ITCL), operator of the Q-Cash network, announced on social media on Tuesday (6 October) that all services had returned to normal operations. Shortly after midnight, Bank Asia texted its customers to confirm that its ATM, card, POS, NPSB, e-commerce, and QR services had fully recovered. Beginning at 9:00 PM on Sunday (4 October), payment services for approximately 30 commercial banks abruptly halted without any advance notice. Initially, some institutions informed customers that services would resume only after noon on 10 October, the deadline ITCL had posted for what it termed routine maintenance. Vendor Dispute and Sabotage Allegations According to a report by The Business Standard, the crisis stemmed from a bitter software migration dispute between ITCL and Compass Plus, a Russian supplier. ITCL reportedly discovered that Compass Plus was being phased out to make way for Way4, an enterprise payments platform from the Brussels-based firm OpenWay. ITCL alleged that in retaliation, the Russian company planted a malicious script onto its servers. This script reportedly forced the machines to restart every eight hours, wiped routing tables, and entirely halted data processing across the network. The dispute had escalated in August when ITCL announced a phased replacement of the Compass Plus platform over a 12-to-18-month period. Compass Plus allegedly threatened to withdraw technical support, demanded an immediate $1.5 million migration fee, and sought an advance payment guarantee backed by Bangladesh Bank. While Compass Plus has not publicly commented on these allegations, which remain unverified, ITCL’s Managing Director Kazi Saifuddin Munir stated that his team alerted partner banks- including mobile financial service bKash- immediately upon identifying the issue, assuring the public that customer data remained secure. Central Bank Fury and Regulatory Accountability Bangladesh Bank intervened on Monday, brokering talks between the vendor and ITCL. However, central bank officials expressed intense anger over ITCL taking critical systems offline without prior warning. Arif Hossain Khan, the bank’s spokesperson, characterized the failure as a basic technical fault, but criticized the inability to contain it quickly, noting it inflicted severe hardship on cardholders. He confirmed that the central bank will issue show-cause notices to member banks. Under national regulations, institutions are legally required to warn the public through national media, television, and direct SMS well in advance of any planned maintenance. One central bank official revealed that ITCL notified regulators only on Sunday evening of its urgent need to go offline. The official emphasized that “emergency” conditions do not excuse a clear breach of the regulatory framework. Banks had previously informed regulators that a security and capacity upgrade would suspend card services from 28 October to 2 November, while the central bank’s payment systems department noted that ITCL’s migration was originally targeted for late October. Lenders Fume Over Reputational Damage ITCL provides core payment processing and gateway infrastructure to 33 commercial banks, managing the National Payment Switch Bangladesh, ATMs, POS terminals, cash recycling machines, and internet banking fund transfers. Industry estimates indicate that the network handles roughly 70% of the country’s bank card transactions. Commercial lenders strongly condemned the abrupt disruption, citing severe reputational damage. Mahfuzur Rahman, Chief Financial Officer of Trust Bank, stated that ITCL informed lenders on Sunday evening- the exact day it pulled the plug- leaving zero time to warn customers. He called the move thoroughly unprofessional, noting it severely eroded public trust across every member bank. During the outage, Trust Bank’s debit cards continued to function on Visa and the domestic NPSB network, but its credit cards, prepaid cards, and Q-Cash ATMs remained entirely dead. Perspective: From Pressenza’s standpoint, this incident transcends a mere corporate or technical dispute. It underscores the profound risks developing nations face when relying heavily on foreign software providers and complex global tech supply chains for domestic financial security. As digital transactions increasingly become the sole lifeline for everyday citizens, this crisis serves as a stark reminder of the critical need for resilient internal controls and robust cybersecurity frameworks. Maksuda Lisa: Maksuda Lisa is a senior journalist and one of Bangladesh’s early-generation women sports journalists, with 18 years of experience working across leading national newspapers, including Dainik Banglabazar and Manab Zamin, as well as television, print media, and online news portals. She is currently a Staff Correspondent at Pressenza International Press Agency (Dhaka Bureau). She is the first woman elected Sports Secretary of the Dhaka Reporters Unity (DRU) and served two consecutive terms. Alongside journalism, she has been actively involved in cricket-particularly women’s cricket- through team management, coaching, and organizational roles. She served as a Liaison Officer at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cups in 2012 and 2014, Manager of the Pink Team in the BCB Women’s Cricket Cup, and Manager of the Dhaka Abahani women’s team. A former first-class cricketer with a 15-year competitive career, she represented Dhaka and Sylhet Divisions at the competitive level. She is currently a National Panel Umpire with the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) and Organising Secretary of the Bangladesh Women Cricketers Association (BWCA). She holds a master’s degree in Political Science. ###########

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