Microsoft outage disrupts global financial markets and trading desks, forces traders to use phones
Traders have turned to phone calls, WhatsApp and fax as Outlook, Teams and other services remain inaccessible, delaying trade confirmations and settlements.
On a volatile week in financial markets, Microsoft's Outlook service went down, forcing traders to revert to using phones and alternative channels for communication. UBS Group AG's Australia and New Zealand execution-sales head Rita Elkazzi struggled to ensure trade recaps were accurate due to the disruption. The tech giant was still working to restore access to its Outlook, Teams, and Copilot systems hours after the outage began.
This has hindered trading desk workflows, delayed corporate disclosures, and affected email access for Japan's Ministry of Finance. Singapore traders reported banks' inability to complete financing deals, while some Indian brokerages warned of potential delays in responding to emailed queries. Australia's main exchange operator ASX Ltd. acknowledged the issue affecting some Microsoft 365 services, including email, but confirmed that its services remained operational.
Workhorse Group Inc., a US truck and bus manufacturer, postponed its earnings release, and Japan's shared IT platform also experienced disruptions. Major tech disruptions rarely last more than several hours, but Microsoft shares were down 0.4% in extended trading. The outage has attracted over 200,000 reports of user issues, ranking among the company's most severe.
Written by urgent.news from Hindustan Times - World News's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
