ACCC grants AusPayNet and AP+ interim authorisation to coordinate industry efforts on the future of account-to-account payments
MEDIA RELEASE
5 May 2025
ACCC grants AusPayNet and AP+ interim authorisation to coordinate industry efforts on the future of account-to-account payments
Australian Payments Network (AusPayNet), the self-regulatory body for the payments industry, and Australian Payments Plus (AP+), the domestic payments provider, have welcomed the ACCC’s decision to grant interim authorisation to start preparatory work to develop a common industry vision regarding the future of account-to-account payments infrastructure in Australia.
Andy White, CEO of AusPayNet emphasised that, “determining a vision for the future state of account-to-account payments is critical in ensuring that Australia’s economy continues to benefit from a modern and resilient payments system”.
“Interim authorisation will enable us to more effectively engage with our members, and other stakeholders, including end-users, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) and Commonwealth Treasury,” he said.
“It will also enable us to take steps to better coordinate industry efforts to address the recommendations in the RBA’s recent Risk Assessment on the proposed decommissioning of the Bulk Electronic Clearing System (BECS),” he added.
“With interim authorisation now in place, we can drive the industry coordination that the RBA has called for - it's an important step in developing a shared vision for the future of account-to-account payments,” said Lynn Kraus, CEO of AP+.
“As an industry we have a unique opportunity to modernise Australia’s payments system to support a more digitally enabled economy and enable greater competition, innovation and productivity. This requires strong coordination between AP+, AusPayNet, the RBA, Treasury and the broader industry,” added Kraus.
The interim authorisation applies to AusPayNet, AP+, members of BECS (87 banks and fintechs), members of the New Payments Platform (NPP), and other businesses involved in account-to-account payments. It enables these organisations to establish processes, gather information, commence planning and conduct other preparatory work.
The work undertaken in this interim phase will support a series of strategic roundtables later this year between AusPayNet, AP+, the RBA and the Commonwealth Treasury. These sessions will help shape a shared vision for the future of account-to-account payments in Australia and define high-level deliverables and milestones for achieving that vision, including clear prioritisation and sequencing.
The Roundtables will ensure that members of BECS and the NPP, operators of alternative payments systems to BECS, and key end-user groups are appropriately engaged through the process. The roundtables are intended to take place in the second half of 2025, subject to the ACCC’s final determination.
Background
AusPayNet
AusPayNet is the industry association and self-regulatory body for the Australian payments industry. We manage and develop standards and guidelines governing payments in Australia. AusPayNet currently has more than 150 members including financial institutions, payment system operators, major retailers and financial technology companies. Our purpose is to create confidence in payments by setting enforceable industry standards for a safe, reliable and effective payments system; leading transformation in payments to drive efficiency, innovation and choice; and being the home for ecosystem collaboration and strategic insight.
As part of payments modernisation, AusPayNet is also leading work on the wind down of the cheques system, the migration of domestic and cross-border payments to the ISO 20022 messaging format, and the upgrade of the Australian card payments system’s security to the Advanced Encryption Standard.
As a key participant in the National Anti-Scam Centre and through its own Economic Crime Forum, AusPayNet is also supporting the Government’s strategy to combat scams and online fraud.
BECS
BECS is currently Australia’s primary system for account-to-account payments. Australians rely on BECS for a wide range of critical payments including welfare, pension, salary and bill payments.
In November 2023, AusPayNet set a target end-date for BECS of June 2030 following extensive consultation with BECS Members and key end-users. The consultation concluded that BECS has served the payments system well over the past 30 years but lacks critical features that are becoming increasingly necessary and available through modern alternatives like the NPP, including payee look-up and confirmation, 24/7 clearing and settlement in near real-time, and data-rich messaging and monitoring that is consistent with global standards, enabling cross border interoperability.
Since the target end-date was set, AusPayNet has put in place a program to monitor the progress of the industry on key dimensions of the transition away from BECS, including viability of modern alternatives like the NPP and end user readiness, to inform its ongoing assessment of the target end-date. AusPayNet also continues to consult and collaborate with BECS members on their individual plans and engagement with their customers (i.e. end-users).
AP+
Australian Payments Plus (www.auspayplus.com.au) brings together Australia’s domestic payment companies, BPAY Group, eftpos and NPP Australia to shape the future of payments for Australia. Working together benefits Australia’s consumers, businesses and government, creating opportunities above and beyond the needs of payments users of all kinds. We’re inspired by what’s possible today, and what could be possible beyond tomorrow. AP+ shareholders include Adyen Australia Pty Limited, ANZ, ASL, Bank of Queensland Limited, Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Limited, CBA, Citigroup Pty Limited, Coles Group Limited, Cuscal Limited, EFTEX Pty Limited, First Data Network Australia Limited trading as Fiserv, HSBC Bank Australia Limited, ING Bank (Australia) Limited, Indue Limited, Macquarie Bank Limited, NAB, PayPal, Norfina Limited (trading as Suncorp Bank) (formerly Suncorp Metway Limited), Tyro Payments Limited, WBC, Windcave Pty Limited, Wise Australia Pty Limited, Woolworths Group Limited and WorldPay.
See http://www.auspayplus.com.au for more information.
NPP
The NPP is Australia’s fast payments infrastructure, bringing certainty and efficiency to payments – and setting Australia up for the digital future.
Launched in 2018, the NPP connects over 100 banks, financial institutions and fintechs, facilitating around $5 billion of payments each day, with money quickly and securely between bank accounts using Osko, PayID and PayTo.
