For the second time in a short period, Israeli SHVA The payments arena (Automated Banking Services) reported today (Thursday) to regulators and users of the national payment system about a communication failure in the credit card processing network. The company's teams are currently investigating the cause of the malfunction.
Starting from 12:00 PM Jerusalem time, SHVA has announced that the card payment system has been operating as usual for the past hour, allowing credit transactions to be processed.
Conflicting reports have emerged regarding resuming automated banking services in Israel. However, the Bank of Israel has issued an unusual directive to banks, instructing them to stock ATMs with cash. The malfunction has expanded to the point where bank customers can only withdraw cash from ATMs belonging to their own bank.
Previously, reports on SHVA's resuming normal operations remained inconsistent. For example, an Israeli major retail chain has yet to resume operations, while some locations have started operating as normal. Regardless, in the past hour, an emergency mechanism has been activated within the banking system to ensure the continued smooth operation of Israel's economy.
This is not the first time the company has faced system disruptions throughout Israel. Last October, SHVA had to deal with a cyberattack that led to payment processing difficulties and connection issues. During that incident, which began at 8 a.m., disruptions were detected in foreign connections to Israel's payment processing system, prompting the company to block access from abroad. The system only resumed normal operations after the disconnection.
