The era of asking your mate for their BSB and account number so you can pay them for those festival tickets – only for them to continually pester to you as to whether or not you actually transferred the dosh – looks like it’ll be coming to an end real soon.
According to a report in the Sydney Morning Herald, the much-coveted prospect of real-time money transfers between different financial institutions may be a reality as soon as January 26 next year. A new payments system developed across Australian financial institutions, which will allow you to send money instantly without the use of pesky BSBs is “on track” for launch.
The so-called ‘new payments platform’ will reportedly allow you to send money using something called a PayID – which could be a username or your phone number. Now you’ve got no bloody excuse for fanging over some coins after you somehow managed to avoid paying for a shout for an entire Friday night.
Chief executive of NPP Australia Adrian Lovney told the SMH that the system will roll out on a trial basis to employees of Australia’s financial institutions as early as next month. NPP Australia is the organisation overseeing the system and is owned by the 13 banks funding the $1 billion project.
“Our aim was to be live in the last quarter of 2017; we’re on track to do that,” Lovney told the SMH.
The project has been discussed on the backchannels and in the media for a fair while now – and it is well overdue – but this is the first time we’ve had a really concrete suggestion that it’s on track and looking like it’ll launch. Happy days!
