Payments declined as Axa Bank accidentally cancels 80,000 cards

Some 80,000 Axa Bank customers in Belgium have been unable to pay for their shopping - after the bank accidentally disactivated their cards.

Customers whose debit and credit cards are due to expire at the end of December 2019 found on Tuesday that their payments were declined.

"We advise customers to use another card, or to pay digitally using the Payconiq or online banking app," said an Axa Bank spokeswoman.

She added that the cards should be reactivated sometime on Wednesday - and all the affected customers should be receiving new cards with a renewed expiry date in the coming days.

The mistake has reportedly affected about 10% of the bank's customer base. Only card payments are affected. The bank accounts themselves remain active and it is still possible to withdraw cash from an ATM.