News

KCB migration to EMV plagued by ATM glitches

April 7, 2014

Last month, Kenya Commercial Bank announced that it would add the MasterCard network to its existing Visa service as it migrated to EMV. Since then, customers have complained of ATM outages as the FI works to integrate the new network.

ATM users have cited erratic ATM services, or in some cases, a complete outage of the bank’s ATM network, according to a report by The Star. Also, customers have reported that ATMs are showing incorrect amounts on balance inquiries — usually on the low side.

KCB acknowledged the problem via Twitter: "There's a challenge with the ATMs and are showing incorrect balances. We are working to resolve the issue."

Banks all across Kenya have rushed to implement EMV before a Visa and MasterCard liability shift date of March 31. However, KCB has yet to complete its internal upgrades and many banks have not yet issued chip cards.