A massive banking blackout has rocked Japan, taking 128 major banks offline in a mysterious single “system failure” and cutting the public off from access to cash, deposits, and online transfers.

The shutdown has hit 3,430 branches, and customers have been given no timeline for when they’ll be able to access their money again.

Every shinkin bank west of the Tokai region was hit.

ATM withdrawals and transfers stopped, branch counters suspended deposits and withdrawals, and internet banking went down across the affected network.

Shinkin Central Bank said the blackout began around 1:30 p.m. on November 6.

Engineers are trying to restart the network while the bank investigates how a communications failure at one center brought customer banking services across western Japan to a standstill.

One Communications Failure Takes Down an Entire Regional Banking Network

Shinkin Central Bank traced the disruption to equipment at its West Japan Center, which oversees the regional banking network.

The bank suspects an equipment malfunction, but the exact cause remains unclear.

It said it had detected no unauthorized access but did not rule out a cyberattack.

The Shinkin Joint System serves 236 shinkin banks, more than 90% of all such banks in Japan.

Its infrastructure is split between eastern and western Japan.

The eastern network continued operating normally, with no reports that the outage had spread.

The longer the blackout lasts, the longer local businesses face disruption to payments and transfers.

Sole proprietors and small and midsize businesses that rely on shinkin banks are particularly exposed.

Shinkin Central Bank is keeping affected lenders informed as engineers work to restore service.

U.S. Banks Brace for a ‘Day After’ Scenario as AI Agents Gain Access to Accounts

As Slay News reported last week, American financial institutions are preparing for a separate threat to the systems that handle everyday payments, deposits, and lending.

Banks are confronting a surge in cyberattacks as customers give autonomous AI assistants the credentials to access their finances.

Banks are already “experiencing unvetted AI agent activity,” Axios reported.

Some agents have gone beyond what customers authorized, contacting call centers or gaining unauthorized access to sensitive systems and platforms.

The danger extends to the money banks depend on to operate.

Automated financial tools can move vast sums quickly, raising the risk that banks could lose the low-cost deposits they rely on for lending.

Axios distinguished that activity from a separate summer attack in which a swarm of AI agents hacked the Hugging Face platform, setting off security alarms across the industry.

“You’re assuming they [agents] are going to act properly on your behalf and they may not,” JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon told The Economic Club of Chicago.

FEMA to Interrupt Broadcasts Nationwide in Emergency Alert Test

The Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Federal Communications Commission are preparing to test the network used to reach Americans during a national emergency.

The exercise is scheduled for November 17, with December 3 set aside as a backup date.

“At approximately 2:20 p.m. ET on November 17, 2026, radio and television broadcasters, cable systems, satellite radio and television providers, and wireline video providers nationwide will interrupt normal programming to relay a test message,” FEMA said.

Viewers could see full-screen notices or scrolling banners accompanied by loud alert tones and a spoken announcement.

The broadcast will identify itself as a test before regular programming resumes.

The Emergency Alert System links thousands of broadcasters and providers and enables the president to address the country during a national emergency.

The drill is designed to expose failures in how those systems receive and relay a national message before the network is needed in a real disaster.

Military Plans to Keep Bases Running for 90 Days Without Outside Support

Former FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino is urging Americans to stock up on essentials as the military prepares major installations to operate for at least 90 days without outside support under an initiative called FORTRESS America.

The plan calls for portable nuclear reactors, large battery systems, and independent local power grids to keep bases running through blackouts.

It also calls for reserves of ammunition, fuel, critical minerals, electronics, spare parts, and medical supplies, along with plans for civilian factories to shift to military production.

The military would establish at least two qualified supply or production pathways for critical requirements to reduce its dependence on any single source.

“We don’t want to rely on standard civilian municipal infrastructure to run our national defense,” War Department spokesperson Sean Parnell told Fox News.

On his podcast, Bongino urged families to prepare their own homes for disruptions to essential services.

“The Pentagon’s doing its job to keep our national security safe and make ‘Fortress America.’

“You have to make ‘Fortress my house,’ ‘Fortress my apartment.’

“Please, do it for everyone.

“Your neighbors are not going to have any extra food,” Bongino said.

Governments Tell Households to Stock Food, Water, and Medicine

Britain’s updated guidance urges households to keep three days’ worth of essentials, including food, water, and medicine, in case severe weather, cyberattacks, blackouts, or infrastructure failures disrupt daily life.

Sweden advises households to be ready to manage on their own for at least a week, including during a crisis or war.

Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, Japan, Australia, and France have also urged households to prepare for emergencies.

Japan Scrambles to Bolster Cybersecurity

On Friday, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi announced an emergency cybersecurity package.

The effort seeks to spearhead a more proactive stance to counter cyberattacks following a spate of security breaches that have rocked Japan.

She said that the package would include the use of artificial intelligence to strengthen basic protection measures and responses to cyberattacks.

Around ¥10 billion ($63.2 million) has been earmarked for the steps.

The plan includes better investigative analysis of attacks and support for victims.