Ex-Lloyds partner TSB Bank has been fined almost £50mln by financial watchdogs in the UK after a fault in its IT systems caused “significant disruption” to 5.2mln customers in 2018.
IT Technical failures saw customers unable to access accounts with the Sabadell Group owned bank, leading to fines worth £48.7mln from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA).
Customers were unable to access banking services via telephones, mobiles, the internet and even in person, according to the FCA.
For some customers, disruption continued from the initial issues in April 2018 until December that year.
“The firm failed to plan for the IT migration properly,” ruled FCA executive director Mark Steward.
“The failings in this case were widespread and serious which had a real impact on the day-to-day lives of a significant proportion of TSB’s customers,” he continued.
PRA boss Sam Woods added: “The disruption to continuity of service experienced by TSB during its IT migration fell below the standard we expect banks to meet.
With TSB having already paid £32.7mln in compensation, the FCA outlined that the bank’s cooperation during the investigation meant its fine had been reduced from £69.5mln.