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November 15, 2023
On the wires
Monoova Launches Real-Time Payments in Australia for World’s First Universal Payments Platform, Optty
PR Newswire
"The world's first universal payments platform Optty has partnered with Australia's largest PayTo provider Monoova to gain access to Australia's payment rails, including PayTo, PayID, BPAY, and online card payments, all via Monoova's API."
November 8, 2023
On the wires
Ripple Partners with Onafriq to Power Digital Asset-Enabled Cross-Border Payments Between Africa and the Rest of the World
Business Wire
"Ripple, and payments fintech Onafriq, previously MFS Africa, announced that they are partnering to facilitate digital asset-enabled cross-border payments between Africa and several new markets, including the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), the UK and Australia."
October 20, 2023
On the web
Tokenized Money, CBDC Could be the Future of Money: Australia’s Central Bank
CoinGeek
"Tokenized money, including central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), could be the future of money and unlock over $10 billion in savings for Australia, the central bank says."
October 16, 2023
On the web
Adyen Goes Live with Tap to Pay on iPhone with Launch Partner NewStore in Australia
Adyen
"Adyen brings Tap to Pay on iPhone to its Australian retailer customers: By partnering with NewStore for the launch, businesses including R.M.Williams, Lorna Jane, and Munro Footwear Group, parent company to Mathers, Williams, Midas and Mountfords, can now accept contactless payments using only an iPhone and the NewStore Associate iOS app."
A Tokenised Future for the Australian Financial System?
Reserve Bank of Australia
"Brad Jones, Assistant Governor (Financial System) discuss the role that tokenised assets and money might have in shaping the future of Australia’s financial system."
On the wires
Australia Central Bank Sees Possible Cost Savings in Tokenisation
Reuters
"Australia's central bank on Monday said tokenised money could help save billions of dollars in costs in domestic financial markets, as it studies whether and how to launch a central bank digital currency."
October 11, 2023
On the web
Australia Unveils Draft Law to Regulate Digital Payment Providers
Reuters
"The Australian government said on Wednesday it planned to introduce laws that would empower the central bank to regulate digital wallet providers including Apple Pay and Alphabet's Google Pay."
October 3, 2023
On the web
The Australian Debit Card Market: Default Settings and Tokenisation – Conclusions Paper
Reserve Bank of Australia
"The Bank has released a Conclusions Paper setting out the conclusions of its recent public consultation on options for further enhancing the competitiveness, efficiency and safety of Australia’s debit card market."
September 28, 2023
On the web
The Australian Debit Card Market: Default Settings and Tokenisation – Conclusions Paper
Reserve Bank of Australia
"The Bank has released a Conclusions Paper setting out the conclusions of its recent public consultation on options for further enhancing the competitiveness, efficiency and safety of Australia’s debit card market."
September 15, 2023
On the web
Australia to be ‘Functionally Cashless’ by 2025
News
"Australia is rapidly heading towards becoming a “cashless society” as banks crack down on withdrawals, close ATMs and branches and ban cash altogether — with one expert predicting physical money will be completely gone by the end of the decade. “I’d say we’ll be functionally cashless by the end of 2025 — it’ll just be a complete rarity,” said Richard Holden, professor of economics at UNSW Business School."
August 23, 2023
On the web
Australia's CBDC Likely Some Years Away, Central Bank Says
Business Insider
"Australia will not be making any decision on a central bank digital currency (CBDC) for some years due to several unresolved issues that surfaced at the end of the pilot project, the country's central bank announced on Wednesday."
July 7, 2023
On the web
By the Numbers: Australian Credit and Debit Card Statistics
Investing.com Australia
"The Covid-19 pandemic saw Aussies take advantage of lockdowns and stay-at-home orders to save and pay down debts, taking credit cards to the sword. However since then, spending has been elevated. Further, since its introduction in 2018, Australians have welcomed Osko and the New Payments Platform to transfer money in near real-time, which is a big benefit over yesteryear's waiting days for funds to clear."
June 22, 2023
On the web
Major Bank’s New Cash Rule for Aussies
Yahoo Life
"Westpac has unveiled major changes to how customers use their debit cards, enacting a $1000 default cash withdrawal limit amid dwindling levels of cash withdrawals across the country. The major bank will also cap transaction limits at a default of $8000 when selecting a ‘credit’ payment — currently a customer’s limit when tapping, inserting or making online payments with a debit card is their available balance."
June 8, 2023
On the web
Cheques Will be Phased Out by 2030 as Mobile Wallet Use Sky-Rockets (Australia)
ABC News
"Australia is set to be a cheque-less society by the end of the decade, if the federal government has its way. Treasurer Jim Chalmers announced on Wednesday morning that his government would be moving to phase out cheques by no later than 2030."
On the wires
Australia's Largest Bank Blocks Payments to Some Crypto Exchanges
Reuters
"Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) said on Thursday it would block some payments to certain cryptocurrency exchanges as part of a suite of new anti-scam measures that would limit customer crypto payments."
June 7, 2023
On the web
Banks, Fintechs Back Australian Payments Overhaul
iTnews
"Banks and fintechs have lent their support to a new strategic plan for Australia’s payments system that was unveiled by the government on Wednesday."
June 6, 2023
On the wires
Commonwealth Bank of Australia Removes International Money Transfer Fee
Reuters
"Commonwealth Bank of Australia, the country's biggest lender, said on Tuesday it was removing transaction fees for its domestic retail and business banking customers sending money outside of the country using one of its digital platforms."
June 2, 2023
On the web
First Real-World, Cross-Border Settlement Using Australian CBDC Completed Through NexPay and Monoova
The Fintech Times
"The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), in collaboration with the Digital Finance Cooperative Research Centre (DFCRC), held an invitation-only conference in Sydney for participants in the Australian Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) pilot project. In a live demonstration, Monoova’s CTO Nicholas Tan, successfully completed the first real-world, cross-border settlement using the pilot CBDC."
May 31, 2023
On the web
CTC International Services First in the World to Develop Android Phone to Android Phone NFC Payment
EIN News
"CTC International Services a leading technology solutions provider, is proud to announce the successful development of an innovative NFC-to-NFC mobile payment solution."
May 24, 2023
On the web
Woolworths Rolls Out a Big Change to the Way People Shop
Australian Financial Review
"Woolworths will start moving payments on to Australia’s real-time payments system as a cheaper alternative to the card networks controlled by Visa and Mastercard, a move it says will reduce fraud while driving customers to its digital wallet and rewards program. The supermarket has become the first major company to offer customers an option to link their bank account directly to its app, using PayTo functionality introduced by Australia’s new payments platform."
May 22, 2023
On the web
Apple Pay on a Roll, and the Banks are Rattled to Their Cores (Australia)
Australian Financial Review
"Inside Apple, it was known as Project Muirfield. Not only would the iPhone be able to make payments, but accept them too. This week the plan came to life in Australia. The US technology giant said Westpac and Tyro would be the first banks to allow business customers to download an app to receive payments from customers with their iPhone, rather than through a payment terminal."
On the wires
Australia Hits Buy-Now-Pay-Later Sector with Consumer Credit Law
Reuters
"Australia said it would regulate buy-now-pay-later services as a consumer credit product under new laws, forcing BNPL providers to carry out background checks before lending in what would be one of the world's toughest regimes for the startup sector."
May 18, 2023
On the web
Banks Unveil New Weapon to Fight Scams, but Consumer Troup Says Customers Remain Exposed (Australia)
ABC News
"Australia's under-pressure banks have unveiled a new tool to combat fraudulent transactions in a bid to stop customers losing more and more money to sophisticated scams. Bank transfers have been identified as the most common payment method for scams, but the banks say the "near real-time reporting" system will help them block the movement of money to fraudsters."
Australian ‘Big 4’ Bank Begins Trial for Cryptocurrency Payment Blocks
Cointelegraph
"Westpac, one of Australia’s ’Big Four’ banks, is launching its first trial of scam protection measures designed to combat fraudulent activities related to cryptocurrencies. The protection measures aim to mitigate losses from scams and reduce potential risks. According to the announcement, investment scams account for approximately 50% of all customer losses linked to scams, while around one-third of all scams involve direct transfers to cryptocurrency exchanges, making them extremely difficult to trace."
May 4, 2023
On the web
Monoova and Primer Jointly Bring Flexible Digital Payments to Australia
IBS Intelligence
"Australian real-time payments provider, Monoova has partnered with Primer, a no-code commerce automation platform, to facilitate easier, seamless payments. With this partnership, Primer will now offer PayTo and PayID enabled by Monoova, in addition to over 100 commerce and payment apps available on its platform. The move provides Primer’s global customers, with operations in Australia, access to New Payment Platform’s real-time payment method, spearheaded by the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), which is set to transform the management of direct debits in Australia."
April 3, 2023
On the web
How Low Can Tap and Pay Fees Go?
Small Caps
"Australians are great adopters of technology, with tap and pay transactions now making up much more than half of all in person transactions. So, it is a bit confronting to find out that the Reserve Bank of Australia, which regulates the payments system, is unsure of how its powers apply to some aspects of the burgeoning area...It is currently very rare for customers to be charged a premium for contact free transactions using credit or debit cards. ALDI is one of the few retailers that does this – if you insert a card and pay with eftpos there is no fee while all tap and go transactions incur a 0.5% surcharge, even for debit cards."
PayTo is Live at 50 Financial Organisations
iTnews
"Over 50 organisations are now live with the digital direct debit PayTo service with banks and financial institutions either onboarded or on-track to meet an April activation deadline. Developed by NPP Australia alongside the finance industry, PayTo allows businesses to initiate payments from customers' bank accounts as part of a ‘PayTo Agreement’. PayTo began rolling out last June with customers predicted to have access to PayTo in their bank accounts by the end of April, following an extension by the Reserve Bank of Australia in 2022 ."
March 16, 2023
On the web
NAB, Westpac Sell Stakes in Open Banking Start-up Basiq
Australian Financial Review
"Cuscal, which provides payment services to mutual banks and fintechs, has acquired Basiq, a Sydney-based start-up backed by powerful investors including Westpac and National Australia Bank, in a deal that points to the looming consolidation of payments, data systems and digital identity. The deal provides an exit for Basiq’s shareholders which include US card giant Visa, Westpac’s venture capital fund Reinventure Group, NAB Ventures, Salesforce Ventures, AP Ventures (backed by Afterpay) and Plaid, a large US-based banking data company."
March 15, 2023
On the web
ANZ to Run Central Bank Digital Currency Pilot at Australian Universities
NFCW
"The Australia and New Zealand Bank is to pilot the use of a prototype central bank digital currency (CBDC) for offline transactions using pre-loaded contactless cards at RMIT University in the Australian city of Melbourne and Southern Cross University in New South Wales. ANZ will test the CBDC for offline payments in one of 14 pilot projects to be launched by the Reserve Bank of Australia and the Digital Finance Cooperative Research Centre as part of their ongoing research into the development and issuance of an Australian CBDC that will also cover use cases including ecommerce, asset trading, corporate bond settlement, livestock auctioning and construction payments."
On the wires
Novatti Launches Multi-Currency Platform for Australian Bill Payments
PR Newswire
"Novatti Group Limited, a leading fintech enabling businesses to pay and be paid, has launched Novatti BillPay, a platform connecting businesses offering BPAY® bills and payees. Novatti BillPay enables businesses with BPAY® bills to accept payments from people overseas who prefer to pay in their currency of choice using digital wallets. Designed for international students, new migrants and people overseas without access to an Australian bank account, users can choose to pay their Australian bills such as tuition fees, rent, utility bills and council fees using a range of Asian currencies as amended and updated from time to time."
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