IT
Major Hungarian bank announces 4-day shutdown starting New Year’s Eve: no cash withdrawal and online banking!
Hungary’s MBH Bank has announced an extended banking shutdown spanning nearly four days as it undertakes significant IT system upgrades. The closure will begin on Wednesday, 31 December 2025, at 22:00, and continue until Sunday, 4 January 2026, at 20:00. During this period, customers should expect disruptions across multiple services, including cash withdrawals, transfers, and online banking functions.
Contents:
Limited access to accounts and services
The bank has advised that all electronic channels—including mobile banking, online banking, and Telebank telephone services—will be unavailable or operate with limited functionality. Specifically:
- Mobile and online banking will be entirely offline from 31 December 22:00 until 4 January 20:00.
- Telebank services will operate with restricted capacity throughout the shutdown.
- Videobank services for account opening, online credit applications, KIOSK services, and student loans will be unavailable from 1 January until 5 January 08:00.
- Transaction SMS notifications will not be delivered between 1 January 22:00 and 2 January 06:00.
ATM and card usage
While cash withdrawals at ATMs may experience partial interruptions between 2 and 4 January, deposits will be completely suspended throughout the shutdown. Debit cards can only be used up to the last known balance as of 31 December 22:00, and within previously set daily limits, until 4 January at 20:00. Online payments using debit and credit cards may also encounter disruptions.
Customers are advised to schedule transactions in advance and ensure sufficient funds are available. For security, card blocking via Telebank remains operational 24/7 at 06 80 350 350 from within Hungary or +36 1 373 33 99 from abroad.
Impact on transfers and payment services
Immediate transfers, secondary account identifiers, and payment requests (including qvik QR, NFC, and link-based transactions) will be unavailable during the shutdown. Any transactions submitted during this period will be rejected. Similarly, domestic forint transfers via Telebank or electronic channels, including one-off, recurring, and authority-based mandates, will be suspended until 4 January 20:00.
Foreign currency transactions submitted electronically between 31 December 18:00 and 4 January 08:00 will not be accepted. However, incoming international transfers via SWIFT or SEPA will be credited normally on 5 January.
Investment services
Paper-based investment services at MBH Bank branches will not be available from 1 January to 5 January 08:00. Nevertheless, MBH Investment Bank’s electronic investment services will continue operating, and external account transactions to and from MBH Investment Bank will be processed as usual.
Operational resumption
All MBH Bank branches will reopen for regular business on Monday, 5 January 2026. The bank has reassured customers that it is taking all measures to minimise inconvenience during this necessary system upgrade, which is intended to improve long-term service quality.
Customer advisory
MBH Bank emphasises that it will never request personal or login information via email or SMS. Customers are urged to protect their data and remain alert to potential fraud attempts during this period.