“Global payments issues” hit Bank of England’s CHAPS service
Banks say the issues are causing delays to large, time-sensitive payments, including some home purchases.
“We are aware of the impact this may have and are working closely with our third-party suppliers, industry and other authorities to resolve the issue as quickly as possible,” the company said.
Retail payment systems and automated teller machines were not affected.
It is unclear how many payments have been affected by the issue, but the bank has been aware of the problem since midday.
Sky News understands that a cyber incident has been ruled out.
Chris Barry, director at Thomas Legal, said the issue would impact property transactions and completions across the country today.
“Many completions are scheduled in advance and occur earlier in the day, but some are completed between the time the issuance is announced and the 4pm deadline,” he told the news page.
“For many, this has made an already stressful day even more stressful. Most contracts have a hard time of 12pm or 1pm built into them so if payment is being made now it is technically a breach of contract.”
CHAPS is one of the largest high-value payment systems in the world.
The major banks and many international banks use the system to make large value payments, processing around £350 billion a day.
It can also be used by people spending millions of pounds on items such as cars, boats and property.
Our business presenter Ian King says it’s not unusual for CHAPS to experience problems, but the fact that it’s a global issue “certainly raises eyebrows”.
“Issues typically arise when one of the banks is experiencing particularly high workloads, which can cause delays,” he said.
“This can cause significant stress for people looking to complete a housing transaction today.
“It’s a big part of the financial infrastructure for the financial services industry.”
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