UBank plans 48-hour web blackout

NAB subsidiary UBank has advised customers that its website will be pulled offline for the weekend to enable a series of technical upgrades.

The online-only bank said its website would be "out of action from 12.01am Saturday 11 August to 11.59pm Sunday 12 August.

"This won't impact any of your payments (because it's over the weekend), but if you were thinking of setting up any transfers or payments, you'll need to do it before or after this weekend," the bank said in an email to customers.

The upgrade would also impact phone banking services.

While acknowledging that a weekend offline could "feel like a year in internet time", UBank claimed its new website would be "worth the wait".

Under the hood, UBank said it would move to "seven-day processing", allowing payments or transfers to go through on weekends and public holidays, rather than have to wait until the next business day.

However, the bank warned that such payments were still at the mercy of the receiving bank's systems.

"UBank is one of the first Australian banks to move to this type of processing and until the other banks catch up, it will mean funds won't be processed at their end until the next business day," UBank said.