It was a bad weekend for Metro Bank.

After a troubled few months where an accounting blunder was uncovered and profits slumped, customers started sharing photos of people queueing up to get their money out.

In scenes that call to mind the panic before the final fall of Northern Rock more than a decade ago, people started questioning the very future of the bank.

One asked on Twitter : "As someone with money in Metro Bank.. I’m now on the horns of a dilemma do I make things worse by joining the mini run on the bank or do I risk having to deal with FSCS if they go down…?"

Mirror Money has also had enquiries from concerned readers about the future of the bank, and whether they should pull their cash out now.

Metro Bank itself, with more than 60 branches across the country, was fast to quash reports it was on the verge of going bust.

There was also a WhatsApp message advising people to pull money out of their accounts and empty safe deposit boxes.

"There are some stories circulating on whatsapp. "*Urgent* . Guys if anyone has metro bank account with money or locker. You need to empty as soon as possible." Is this genuine…..this is spreading like wildfire," One customer asked the bank about them on Twitter .

"These are false rumours. We can reassure our customers there is no reason to be concerned," the bank replied to worried customers.

In a full statement, the group said: "We're aware there were increased queries in some stores about safe deposit boxes following false rumours about Metro Bank on social media and messaging apps.

"There is no truth to these rumours and we want to reassure our customers that there is no reason to be concerned."

But this didn't stop its shares coming under pressure – as values dropped bellow £5 for the first time, although they have recovered to £5.14 at the time of writing.

That's less than a quarter of the £22 it launched at and almost 90% down on the peak price of more than £40 in March last year.

Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said: “Metro Bank’s shares continue to fall as investors worry about its financial health.

"Having hundreds of customers queue up to withdraw money certainly hasn’t helped matters, particularly as the business is in the process of trying to raise £350 million to alleviate concerns about its balance sheet.

“Chatter on social media that customers’ money wasn’t safe spiralled out of control at the weekend, with memories of the run on Northern Rock in 2007 still in many people’s minds.

“While Metro Bank has done its best to reassure customers that their money is safe, pictures of one of its branches packed with individuals wanting to cash out is damaging to its reputation and could hurt new customer growth, at least in the short term."

What's actually going on at Metro Bank then?

Since January, Metro Bank has been battling to shore up confidence after a major accounting error in was found that wiped £1.5 billion off its market value.

The bank itself flagged the mistake – which concerned the risk weighting of commercial loans secured on property and certain specialist buy-to-let loans.

But as a response it said it had to find £350 million in additional funds.

Metro Bank has said it is now in final discussions with existing and new shareholders to raise the £350 million it needs and the deals are expected to be completed by the end of June.

But the underlying business is sound.

The group's first quarter figures earlier this month showed pre-tax profits of £6.9 million, with statutory profits at 4.3 million.

Chief executive Craig Donaldson said: "The bank has remained resilient with a 6% increase in customer accounts on Q4 2018 and momentum in the rest of the business continuing."

Chairman Venon Hill added: "We have faced challenges this quarter, but we firmly believe that our model offers a superior banking experience for our customers.”

Is your cash safe?

Yes. The bank is profitable and its debts are under control. More than that, it's still growing – adding almost 100,000 customers in the first three months of the year.

On top of all that, it's not 2007 any more.

Since the financial crash customers have far better protection, with the first £85,000 deposited in each UK registered bank 100% safe no matter what happens to the bank.

Other post-crisis rules mean deposits can be moved to another bank more easily to ensure ease of access.

Don't worry about deposit boxes either – Metro pointed out quickly that you, not that bank, own what's kept in them and will continue to do so no matter what.

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