Microsoft Outage Takes Down Email Support at Kenyan Banks

A global Microsoft outage on Friday, Nov. 13, 2026, knocked out email at several major Kenyan banks, Brand Spur reported. The banks told customers to use WhatsApp, phone lines and call centres instead. The outlet did not give a start time or time zone.

The banks’ notices, as described by Brand Spur, pointed to trouble with customer communication only. None of them said payments or other banking transactions were affected.

Which Kenyan banks moved customers off email

Equity Bank and UBA Kenya asked customers to send enquiries by telephone or WhatsApp. Stanbic Bank Kenya pointed clients to its Voice Branch call centre or to their relationship managers. Standard Chartered Bank Kenya sent customers text messages saying its email service was unavailable.

The problems also hit digital-only banking. Loop, the digital banking platform run by NCBA Group, reported trouble with both email and its in-app customer support. It sent customers to its phone lines and social media accounts for help.

How far the Microsoft outage reached

Brand Spur described the disruption as global. It said email and other Microsoft workplace communication tools were affected in several countries, and businesses and institutions reported problems reaching the digital tools they normally use. The report did not name the specific Microsoft products involved, and it did not include a statement from Microsoft.

Microsoft’s cause for the outage has not been disclosed in the reporting. Brand Spur also did not say when email service came back for the banks, so it is unclear from the report whether the problem has been fully resolved.

What it means for bank customers

For customers of the affected banks, the main effect was on getting help. Questions, complaints and routine requests that normally go by email had to go through phone, WhatsApp, call centres or social media while email was down. With email and in-app support down together at Loop, its customers had even fewer ways to reach the bank.

Because the notices did not mention payment problems, the outage as reported touched how people contact their bank, not the money in their accounts. Customers who are unsure whether a problem is on their end can work through some simple checks for a bank app that is not working.

Brand Spur said the episode shows the risk for banks of leaning heavily on one outside technology provider for everyday customer communication. Losing email even briefly can slow complaint handling and ordinary enquiries. The outlet said banks elsewhere, including in Nigeria, face the same exposure as they expand digital services and rely more on cloud-based tools.

Where to get help while email is down

Each bank named its own fallback channels. Equity Bank and UBA Kenya customers were directed to phone and WhatsApp, Stanbic Bank Kenya customers to the Voice Branch call centre or a relationship manager, and Loop customers to phone lines and social media. Standard Chartered Bank Kenya told customers by text that email was unavailable. Customers can check their bank’s official channels for updates on when email support returns.

Source: Brand Spur