NatWest has fixed a major outage that prevented millions of customers from accessing their mobile banking app on Friday morning, forcing some to abandon shopping trips and leaving others unable to pay staff.

The high street bank apologised to customers after the disruption began around 9am, affecting more than 10 million daily users of the app. The problems were caused by an update rolled out on Thursday evening.

"We have resolved the issues causing this and customers are now able to log in and make payments as normal," a NatWest spokesperson said. The bank had earlier apologised "for any inconvenience caused".

During the outage, NatWest advised customers to use alternative access methods including online banking, telephone banking, or visiting branches. The bank also suggested that customers could request security codes via text message rather than through the app.

The disruption comes as NatWest continues closing physical branches whilst pushing customers towards digital services. The bank is set to close 53 more branches throughout 2025, leaving it with 431 locations. More than 80 per cent of its active current account customers now bank online, with 97 per cent of new accounts opened digitally.

This latest incident adds to a pattern of banking outages across the sector. Data gathered by the Treasury Committee in March revealed that nine major UK banks and building societies experienced 803 hours of technology outages - equivalent to 33 days - between 2023 and early 2025.

NatWest recorded the highest number of outage hours during this period, with 194 hours lost across 13 incidents. The bank paid £348,000 in compensation to affected customers. By comparison, Barclays faces potential compensation payments of up to £12.5 million for outages since 2023.

Jenny Ross, money editor at consumer group Which?, warned of the serious consequences for customers relying on digital banking. "In the worst cases there's a risk that impacted NatWest customers may miss important bill payments, find themselves unable to pay for essential services or risk going overdrawn," she said.

Ross advised affected customers to keep evidence of disrupted payments and contact companies about potential bill payment delays to avoid late fees.

The outage occurred just days after the UK government sold its final shares in NatWest Group, ending 17 years of state ownership following the £45 billion taxpayer bailout during the 2008 financial crisis.

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