Bank Mellat Iran's electronic banking services, including ATMs, card payment terminals, and Internet banking, faced several hours of disruption on November 17, leaving many cardholders and shops unable to process payments at various locations.

While the issue extended to fuel stations across Iran, officials confirmed that the fueling process remained unaffected, as alternative payment methods, including cash, were used. 

Users took to social media to express frustration. One individual on X shared their experience of waiting two hours at a fuel station in northeast Tehran due to the malfunctioning payment systems. Another commented, “There was no electricity for three hours today. I left the dark basement hoping for a cup of coffee, but the Bank Mellat card—the only card I had with me—did not work at all.”

The incident has reignited concerns over the vulnerability of Iran's electronic banking infrastructure, marking the second widespread disruption of Bank Mellat’s services in less than a month.

On November 9, a previous service disruption affected payments at 40% of the country's fuel stations. Although that issue was resolved relatively quickly, the recurrence of technical failures has raised public and industry concerns about the reliability of banking and payment systems. Similar incidents last year, such as a cyberattack on Iran’s fuel distribution network, highlight the critical importance of safeguarding the nation’s infrastructure.

With its deputy for innovative technologies, the Central Bank of Iran has weighed in, stating that no cyberattacks have occurred on banking systems in recent months. Bank Mellat also attributed the latest disruption to technical issues rather than external interference.

Observers are calling for measures to diversify payment services at fuel stations, warning that reliance on a single provider increases systemic risk. Analysts also caution that growing dependence on digital systems for essential services means even brief disruptions can cause significant inconvenience and erode public trust.

This concern is particularly relevant for Bank Mellat, given its substantial role in Iran’s electronic payment industry. According to an October report by Shaparak, a leading payment services regulator, Saman Electronic Payment holds the largest market share in transaction volume and value, at 20.50% and 21.57%, respectively. Bank Mellat’s subsidiary, Behpardakht Mellat, ranks second, trailing by a narrow margin.

Banks such as Bank Sepah and Bank Mellat dominate transaction acceptance, accounting for 17.72% and 16.22% of transaction volume and value, respectively. However, repeated technical issues risk undermining their competitive edge.

The impact of Bank Mellat’s disruptions extends beyond individual users. Behpardakht Mellat’s infrastructure supports a vast network of businesses, including prominent online platforms.

Last week, ZarinPal, a leading Iranian payment gateway for e-commerce, reported operational downtime due to the disruptions at Behpardakht Mellat, which is in line with increasing hacks and disruptions to the localised banking system. 

“We managed to resume operations only after disconnecting our systems from Behpardakht’s network,” said Mostafa Amiri, ZarinPal’s co-founder.