The Australian payments landscape is at a critical juncture.
For years, Zepto has been a passionate advocate for modernising our nation's payments infrastructure, championing a shift from legacy systems to a real-time, data-rich future. That's why we wholeheartedly welcome the recently announced public consultation launched by Australian Payments Network (AusPayNet) and Australian Payments Plus (AP+) on the future of Australia's account-to-account (A2A) payments system.
This Public consultation on the future vision for account-to-account payments in Australia isn't just another consultation; it's a pivotal moment. With the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) and Treasury having published a paper outlining its public interest framework for the account-to-account payments system to support the consultation, this initiative seeks to coalesce an industry vision for A2A payments — one that will profoundly shape how Australians, businesses, and governments transact for decades to come.
As we at Zepto have consistently maintained, establishing a clear, collaborative roadmap is essential to navigating the complexities of this transition and unlocking the full potential of our digital economy.
Zepto's Unique Perspective: On the Front Lines of Payments Modernisation
At Zepto, we've not just observed the evolution of Australia's payments system; we've been active participants in it, pushing the boundaries of what's possible.
Our journey as the first non-bank fintech to connect directly to the New Payments Platform (NPP) as a Connected Institution, and the first non-bank payments provider to become an Accredited Data Recipient under the Consumer Data Right (CDR), gives us a truly unique vantage point. We’ve been immersed in the intricacies, the challenges, and the immense opportunities that arise when moving from the familiar, yet increasingly limited, Bulk Electronic Clearing System (BECS) to the dynamic capabilities of the NPP.
This direct experience has provided us with invaluable insights into the practicalities of real-time payments, the imperative of data-rich messaging, and the critical need for a payments ecosystem that is not only robust but also genuinely accessible and equitable. We understand, perhaps more acutely than most, the friction points that large enterprises face as they endeavour to move from decades-old payment processes to the agility and efficiency offered by modern rails. It is this understanding that positions us as a trusted guide for businesses navigating this complex, yet vital, transformation.
The Inevitable Evolution: Beyond BECS to the NPP Future
For over 30 years, BECS has served Australia well, forming the backbone for essential transactions like payroll, direct debits, and bill payments. However, as the digital economy accelerates, BECS’s limitations – lack of real-time capabilities, and constrained data-carrying capacity – have become increasingly apparent. As AusPayNet’s extensive three-year consultation concluded in December 2023, while BECS is reliable, it lacks critical features that are now available through modern alternatives like the NPP.
This is not a criticism of BECS, but rather an acknowledgement of technological progress and evolving user expectations. AusPayNet’s slated decommissioning of BECS is now a galvanising force, an impetus for collective effort to ensure a seamless and efficient transition to modern alternatives. The RBA's March 2025 risk assessment on the decommissioning of BECS further underscored the foundational importance of a clear industry vision for the future of A2A payments as they move to the NPP.
This vision must, as the RBA highlighted, be consistent with the public interest and consider a broad set of stakeholder requirements. It’s about building a system that serves everyone, from individual consumers paying a friend via PayID, to large corporations managing complex supply chain payments, and government agencies disbursing welfare.
“The account-to-account system supports consumers, businesses and government agencies in their everyday economic activities. It is a vital part of Australia’s financial infrastructure.”
Brad Jones, RBA Assistant Governor (Financial System)
Core Pillars of a Future-Ready A2A System: Zepto's Deep Alignment
The RBA’s paper articulates five strategic end-user objectives for a successful A2A payments system, aligning perfectly with the public interest.
These objectives – Accessibility, Capability, Cost-effectiveness, Reliability, and Safety – resonate deeply with Zepto’s long-held principles and our submissions to previous Treasury consultations.
1. Accessibility: Ensuring a Payments System for Every Australian
The paper defines Accessibility in a profoundly important way: as universal access for all end-users to send and receive transactions through standard payment accounts and customer channels. This includes ensuring the system is inclusive of more vulnerable customer cohorts – those with lower incomes, limited digital awareness, or from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds – and that end-users have genuine choice over their payment service provider, with the freedom to switch without major friction.
This vision resonates deeply with Zepto, and indeed, we wholeheartedly endorse this principle. For us, a truly modern payments system isn't just about speed or data; it's about ensuring every Australian, every business, and every government agency can seamlessly interact with the financial ecosystem.
Ultimately, the aspiration for a payment system that provides universal access is a shared responsibility, and a goal we are deeply committed to helping Australia achieve.
2. Capability: Unlocking the Power of Real-Time and Data-Rich Payments
The consultation stresses that the payment system must perform all required functions, from initiation and transmission of data to clearing and settlement, and notification of outcomes, for both single and bulk payments. This speaks directly to the transformative power of the NPP. Unlike BECS, the NPP offers:
- Near real-time clearing and settlement, 24/7: Enabling immediate fund availability, crucial for cash flow management and addressing urgent payment needs.
- Data-rich messaging (ISO 20022): The ability to carry significantly more remittance information with each payment is a game-changer for reconciliation, particularly for complex corporate and government payments. This feature is also vital for improving fraud detection and compliance with Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Counter-Terrorism Financing (CTF) regulations.
Zepto has been at the forefront of leveraging these capabilities, developing solutions that not only facilitate the migration of traditional BECS use cases, such as payroll and direct debits, to the NPP but also unlock entirely new possibilities for businesses.
3. Cost-effectiveness: Driving Efficiency for All
Transparency, reasonableness, and affordability of charges and costs are paramount. A truly modern A2A system should drive efficiencies that translate into lower costs for end-users. Increased competition, fostered by greater accessibility, naturally contributes to a more cost-effective ecosystem by incentivising providers to offer better services at competitive prices.
As a non-bank participant, Zepto’s presence in the market already offers businesses alternative, often more efficient, pathways to access real-time payments, challenging existing cost structures and fostering a more competitive landscape.
4. Reliability: Trust Through Resilience
A payment system is only as good as its reliability. High availability, robust contingency, and strong recoverability arrangements are non-negotiable. As the Australian economy becomes increasingly digital, and dependence on digital payment methods grows, the impact of outages or cyber incidents becomes significantly amplified.
The NPP, by design, incorporates modern resilience features. However, true system resilience requires a coordinated effort across all participants – financial institutions, payment service providers, and infrastructure operators. Zepto is deeply committed to operational excellence and robust security protocols, ensuring our services contribute to the overall stability and trustworthiness of the NPP ecosystem. We understand that for large enterprises, uninterrupted payment operations are not just convenient; they are mission-critical.
5. Safety: A Secure Foundation for Digital Payments
The escalating threat of fraud and scams in our digital economy underscores the critical need for an A2A system that prioritises safety and security, including the protection of data and funds. While real-time payments offer immense benefits, they also present new challenges in mitigating fraud, given the speed at which funds can move.
Zepto has consistently championed the highest possible standards of consumer protection and security. As we stated in Zepto's submission to Treasury's consultation on payments system modernisation:
"We advocate for a payments licensing framework which promotes competition and innovation through clearly defined rights and obligations, and which upholds the highest possible standards of consumer protection. This is because we understand that a secure and safe payments ecosystem is not only the key driver of value for our businesses but is at the heart of a digital economy that empowers both consumers and businesses."
The enhanced data capabilities of the NPP are instrumental here, enabling better real-time monitoring and anomaly detection to combat fraudulent activities. Industry collaboration on information sharing and proactive measures are vital to stay ahead of bad actors.
"Same Activity, Same Risk, Same Regulation": Leveling the Paying Field
Beyond the five strategic end-user objectives, the RBA's consultation paper also outlined three 'Foundational Elements of the A2A Payments System' in Table 2.
These foundational elements speak to the very structure and operation of a modern payments system:
- Effective industry governance and coordination: This calls for clear mandates, balanced decision-making, and critically, objective, risk-based, and publicly disclosed participation requirements that ensure fair and open access to the infrastructure across all potential participant types. It also highlights the need for effective standards (from connectivity to security and fraud management) and mechanisms for continuous evaluation and coordination.
- A viable, competitive, and innovative participant ecosystem: This emphasises that providers must comply with all relevant legal and regulatory obligations, manage their risks effectively, and, crucially, foster competition. It explicitly states that competitive behaviour, including wholesale pricing for indirect participants, must not impede competition or new market entrants.
- Clear and proportionate public sector expectations and regulation: This underlines the need for government to communicate strategic direction and, vital for innovation, for individual participants to be proportionately regulated in relation to their financial soundness, risk management, and consumer protection.
This brings us directly to a cornerstone of Zepto’s advocacy: the principle of “same activity, same risk, same regulation.” As Treasury progresses with reforms for a new licensing regime for Payment Service Providers (PSPs), this principle is absolutely key to realising these foundational elements and ensuring a level paying field.
Zepto: Your Trusted Guide to the Real-Time Future
As Australia stands on the cusp of this significant payments evolution, large enterprises face the complex task of re-architecting their payment processes, integrating with new rails, and leveraging the capabilities of the NPP. This transition requires more than just technical expertise; it demands a deep understanding of both legacy systems and future possibilities, coupled with a commitment to security, efficiency, and user experience.
Zepto is uniquely positioned to be your trusted guide through this transformation. Our direct connection to the NPP, our leadership in the CDR, and our long-standing advocacy for an accessible, competitive, and secure payments ecosystem means we don't just talk about modernisation; we live it. We build solutions that bridge the gap between yesterday's systems and tomorrow's real-time reality, ensuring your business can harness the full benefits of Australia's advanced payments infrastructure.
A Call for Collective Vision
The AusPayNet and AP+ consultation is an indispensable initiative. It represents a vital opportunity for all stakeholders – from end-users to financial institutions and fintech innovators – to contribute to a shared vision for Australia’s A2A payments system. We encourage every interested party to engage thoughtfully with this consultation.
At Zepto, we are eager to continue our proactive participation, offering our insights and practical experience to help forge an A2A payments future that is truly universal, resilient, efficient, and innovative, ensuring Australia remains a world leader in payments.
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