SBI, Union Bank push digital banking as September strike could disrupt branches for five days
A proposed nationwide bank strike from Sept. 28–30, 2026, combined with the weekend, could affect branch access for five consecutive days. SBI and Union Bank of India are directing customers to ATMs, UPI, mobile and internet banking—raising the importance of digital-payment readiness for retailers.
What happened
State Bank of India · A proposed nationwide bank strike from Sept. 28-30 could disrupt branch banking for up to five days including the weekend. SBI and Union
Key facts
- Three-day nationwide strike: Sept. 28-30, 2026
- Potential five consecutive days of branch disruption: Sept. 26-30
- Indefinite strike announced from Oct. 26
What changed
A proposed nationwide bank strike from Sept. 28-30 could disrupt branch banking for up to five days including the weekend. SBI and Union Bank advised customers to use ATMs, UPI, mobile and internet banking for routine transactions.
Why this matters
Prepare for a five-day branch-access disruption by promoting UPI and card acceptance, ensuring payment-terminal uptime, and securing extra cash only where customer demand remains cash-heavy.
What to watch
- Formal confirmation, withdrawal or expansion of the September 28-30, 2026 bank strike.
- UPI transaction success rates, PSP/bank outage notices and NPCI volume advisories in the days before and during the disruption.
- ATM cash-out reports and cash withdrawal spikes by city, especially near cash-heavy store clusters.
- Merchant settlement delays, payment gateway incident rates and customer-service contacts related to failed or duplicated payments.
- Store-level mix shifts from cash to UPI/cards, abandoned baskets and COD refusal rates.