It has been observed by the State Bank of Pakistan that incidents of “ATMs out of cash/service” are on the rise particularly during the days of 1st of Ramadan, Eid holidays and other long weekends. In order to minimize such incidents and to ensure continuous availability of ATM facility, following guidelines are being issued:

i. Adequate back-up arrangements should be made to ensure availability of ATM service round the clock. Disruption of service for regular maintenance should be properly planned and communicated in order to avoid inconvenience to card holders. Any major breakdown, along with reasons thereof, should immediately be reported to this department.

ii. A maximum downtime of ATMs from 12.00 of Midnight to 8.00 a.m. to process Zakat deductions and closing of books of accounts on 1st Ramadan, 30th June and 31st December would be admissible.

iii. Special arrangements should be made to replenish cash in ATMs on long weekends and holidays. For this purpose, extra cash cassettes to refill ATMs may be arranged to mitigate the risks associated with the opening of cash vaults at branches during holidays.

iv. Comprehensive operating procedures should be put in place to timely resolve the cases of out of cash, breakdown of ATMs, Systems and Network.

The above instructions will come into force with immediate effect. All the banks and Switch Operators are required to comply with these guidelines.

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