Say hello to Hay - new Australian Fintech launches today

Australian fintech Hay has launched today, set to provide Australians with new mobile-first money solutions that are fit for modern life.

Hay has received an Australian Financial Services Licence (AFSL) and are pursuing further licences so they can offer other innovative products and services to their users. An application for a Restricted Authorised Deposit-taking Institution banking licence is currently with APRA.

Hay will first offer a digital transaction account through the Hay smartphone app packed with features like enriched payment information, monthly insights and travel budgeting features with fee-free foreign exchange rates via the Hay Visa card.

Hay’s waitlist is now open with the opportunity to secure a place as a founding member. The first 10,000 to sign up and open an account will become Hay Founders and will be rewarded with unique benefits for the life of the account including early access to all feature releases and a limited-edition founding members card. 

Hay CEO Andrew Laycock said: “It is such an exciting time for fintechs in Australia; we are experiencing a revolution in banking services across the globe and it is now Australia’s turn. We’ve spent the past 18 months researching, listening and building our independent world-leading cloud-native infrastructure to deliver convenient and flexible solutions that fit our users’ lives. We’ve built cutting-edge technology but it’s not about being overly clever or the most ‘out there’. It’s about helping people understand what they can do to make the most of what they have in a way that works for them. We’ve been testing for several months now and when we open our digital account to our Founders and the public in the coming weeks we are confident that our users will love Hay from day one. But we consider ourselves always in a constant state of evolution and the digital nature of Hay means we are able to continue to add new features rapidly… so, as they say, watch this space.”

With headquarters in Surry Hills, NSW, Hay also has international offices in London and Belfast which was a strategic decision to make sure it remains at the heart of the latest developments in global technology trends.

Hay Chief Operating Officer, David Curry said: “We have the advantage that a lot of our team have local and international technology and finance experience. Many have directly participated in the UK neobank revolution, so we’ve seen first-hand what has and hasn’t worked and built Hay from there. Due to the cost of legacy, the traditional financial providers just aren’t able to respond fast enough to change. That’s where we come in, with the ability to constantly evolve and deliver best-in-class infrastructure, compliance, privacy and security.”

Like the rest of the app, opening a Hay account is fast, simple, secure and 100% mobile. In as little as three minutes your Hay card will be on its way and delivered within five days in sustainably responsible packaging, produced from reused pressed sugarcane-pulp, non-toxic food grade glue and is 100% compostable and recyclable.

Users will have greater opportunity to save by living fee-lessly. Hay charges zero fees for transactions, purchases and cash withdrawals at ATMs across Australia. There are also zero setup or monthly account keeping fees.

Hay uses the New Payments Platform (NPP) for instant transfer in and out with real-time push notifications sent to your smartphone or wearable device. The Hay app ensures users can clearly see where they are spending with a detailed transaction view including merchant names, logos, location on maps and category.

The insights tab allows users to visually track their monthly spending habits, breaking down categories and favourite merchants. When overseas, the Hay app automatically switches to travel mode and shows your held balance in the foreign currency to ensure maximum control and transparency and to help users stay on top of their travel budgets. With fee-free Visa FX rates, $500 fee-free ATM withdrawals per month and no fees on international transactions, instore or online you can truly spend like a local anywhere in the world.

Hay is a Visa Fintech Fast Track partner – a program enabling fintechs like Hay to deliver new commerce experiences on Visa’s global network. As a result, Hay customers will be able to make payments anywhere that Visa is accepted globally including 61 million merchant locations worldwide.

No matter where you are security is baked in with 24/7 real-time fraud monitoring and users can contact the Sydney based Hay Help Team easily using the in-app chat during business hours.

Head to the App Store or Google Play or visit www.hellohay.co or to find out more and join the waitlist to reserve your place as a Founder.