Real-time payments to be launched after Australia Day

A new payments systems is “on track” to be able to deliver real time bank transfers and the ability to ditch BSB numbers from Australia Day.

While most people take a break over summer, banks will be putting the finishing touches on the biggest overhaul in the payments system in years.

The new payments platform or NPP is a $1 billion project to deliver real-time payments between customers of different banks, and the company to run the system says it will be rolled out to the public after Australia Day next year.

The long-running project has been scheduled to be launched this quarter, and despite industry chatter about some banks dragging the chain, chief executive of NPP Australia Adrian Lovney said the project was still running on time, as it would go “live” next month to a limited number of people.

From next month, it would be open only to staff from participating banks, who would then be able to send payments to one another, he said.

Banks would start rolling out real-time payments to their millions of customers soon after Australia Day, he said, denying the project was being held up by straggler banks.

“Our aim was to be live in the last quarter of 2017; we’re on track to do that,” Mr Lovney said.

“All of the banks that are participating are moving in absolute lockstep and absolute unison through the final stage of testing, and we anticipate a strong take-up and a strong participation at launch,” he said.

“When people come to work after Australia Day, the platform will commence rolling out to the public at large.”

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Source: Real-time payments to be launched after Australia Day – The Sydney Morning Herald