About 40 credit unions conducted business offline on Thursday
LEWISTON – The computer mainframe for dozens of credit unions failed on Thursday, forcing some tellers and loan officers back to basics.
“Some of the work was done with paper and pen,” said Donna Steckino, president and CEO of Community Credit Union, which has branches in Lewiston and Auburn.
Most transactions could be accomplished offline, she said. “We have still been servicing our members and haven’t had any major problems.”
The shutdown affected about 40 credit unions statewide, from opening time until around 3:30 p.m. Most of the firms have not seen this magnitude of computer failure for several years, said Jon Murphy, president of the Maine Credit Union League. But employees train for these types of interruptions, he and Steckino said.
“It poses some challenges operationally,” she added. “Generally speaking people understand that computer systems can experience problems. It’s not something we’d want to experience on a daily basis.”
Synergent – the technology subsidiary of the Maine Credit Union League – processes data for members through its Portland headquarters. The company reported a hardware failure early on Thursday. Workers replaced parts and ran diagnostics before the mainframe went back online, Murphy said.
The main effects on business? Members could not immediately check balances or conduct large transactions, he said.
“Obviously we do everything to minimize” the chances of computer failures, Murphy said, “it does happen from time to time no matter what we do.”
The problem will not result in a major expense for the league, which serves 88 credit unions, Murphy said.
Comments are no longer available on this story