One of the largest bank in Ethiopia is trying to recover million of dollars after customers were able to withdraw unlimited funds during the weekend after a technical glitch.
According to local media reports,more than $40 million was withdrawn from the Commercial Bank of Ethiopia.
The customers transferred the money to other banks after they realised they could withdraw more than their total balance.
However,the transaction was stopped several hours later after some customers had made transactions.
People formed long lines at Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE) patiently waiting for hours to make withdrawals totalling into millions.
The bank’s CEO Abe Sano,said that the university students were the ones who spread the news of the technical glitch in the media and withdrawing much of the money.
It is not clearly indicated exactly how much was withdrawn but the CEO Abe Sano stated half a million transactions were made during the glitch.
The bank’s CEO Abe Sano during a press conference said that a large portion was withdrawn by students urging them to return the money.
Several universities in Ethiopia pleaded students who withdrew the money to return to the bank.
Abe Sano reportedly stated that anybody who returns the money will not be criminally prosecuted.
In a statement issued by Ethiopia’s central bank stating that the interruption was a result of system security checks and not cyber attack.
CBE president Abe Sano said the bank would take legal action against those who do not give back the funds by the end of the week.
“There is no way that they can escape because they are digital [transactions] and they are our customers. We know them. They are traceable and they are legally accountable for what they did,” he said.
