Mumbai: Distressed and angry customers of the crisis-hit Yes Bank trooped outside scores of branches and ATMs in Mumbai, Thane, Pune, Nagpur and other cities on Friday to withdraw money after the RBI imposed curbs on withdrawal apart from other measures late on Thursday.
Panicky customers rushed to the ATMs since late Thursday for withdrawals but many soon became dry, leaving them exasperated, especially in the suburbs and residential areas, and the scene was repeated on Friday morning in commercial areas of south Mumbai, Bandra Kurla Complex, Andheri, Lower Parel, etc.
Besides, customers said certain UPI transactions which are on the Yes Bank PSP are reportedly not going through, all types of accounts are inaccessible even via netbanking, and many fintech players are hit badly.
Mumbaikars are particularly peeved as the RBI orders came on the eve of the popular Holi festival on Monday, followed by Gudi Padva after a fortnight, the ongoing examination season when cash in hand is a necessity, not to mention the long weekend breaks thousands have planned in advance.
A customer Vijay P. Singh said he drove down to the ATM in Kandivali suburb around 1 a.m. and was stunned to see at least 25 people in queue.
“I went around 3-4 other ATMS between Dahisar-Malad with the same results and finally returned home at 4 am empty-handed… Even the online transactions are not on and the crowded branches offer little hope,” Singh rued when contacted by IANS.
Another shaken customer Vinod Panda from Navi Mumbai rushed to the Yes Bank Kharghar Branch but had to return disappointed as the bank was not willing to disburse even the promised Rs 50,000.
“The officials informed me that I have to prove some emergency like medical or paying educational fees, etc… They claim that all problems will be resolved by next month, but assured that the online facility would be operational later today,” a worried Panda told IANS.
Ditto have been reports from many customers, including a retired teacher from Dadar who said that she transferred all her monies to the bank for convenience and now regrets it.
Many agitated customers confronted the Yes Bank officials by comparing the crisis to the Punjab & Maharashtra Cooperative Bank imbroglio which erupted last September.
However, the officials defended themselves by claiming that while the PMC Bank crisis was due to frauds, the Yes Bank was only a case of liquidity crunch which would be resolved within a month, and customers woes would ease.
Given the state of the customers of PMC Bank with around a dozen deaths reported so far, there are few takers for the Yes Bank’s arguments after the sudden developments last night.
The Yes Bank has over 1,000 branches and 1,800-plus ATMs around the country which are under severe stress after the crisis erupted last night.
