A technical failure within Nets’ system caused widespread disruptions to Denmark’s payment system on Saturday, leaving restaurant patrons, festival attendees, and travelers stranded. The disruption caused significant issues across the country.

The payment system failure led to chaotic conditions, particularly at restaurants and festivals where patrons were unable to use their cards. Queues formed at the Great Belt Bridge due to the closed payment system, resulting in staff facing threats.

Nets released a statement explaining that the disruption stemmed from a component failure within its own system. The company stated that the error was so severe that even its backup systems were unable to maintain operations.

Nets described the incident as “rare” and assured the public that measures are being implemented to prevent a recurrence. The component failure occurred in the underlying infrastructure, which is managed by a “global partner.” The company is working to address the issue and restore full functionality to the payment system.