Amazon’s NAB integration shows growing appetite for instant payments in Australia

Australia
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Instant payments are seeing adoption across more and more industries and various markets, with Australia the latest major economy to see a prominent integration.

The National Australia Bank (NAB) has integrated its PayTo solution, a pay-by-bank product, with Amazon’s Australian domain. The integration of an instant payment solution onto one of Australia’s most widely used e-commerce sites is a major moment.

Australian Amazon customers can now use PayTo for one-off or recurring payments from their bank account. As with other similar partnerships, Amazon and NAB have emphasised the seamlessness and security of using pay-by-bank methods.

“Our goal is to provide our business customers with simple, safe and convenient payment options to support their growth and customers with excellent experiences,” said Shane Conway, NAB Executive of Enterprise Payments and Technology Modernisation.

“By integrating our new Pay by Bank (PayTo) capability into its Australian store, Amazon is providing its customers with a new, easy, and secure way for them to pay, while at the same time delivering a cost efficient, instant payment solution for its business.

“Once Amazon shoppers add and approve PayTo as a payment method via their online banking, there will be no need for them to remember card, account, or reference details. It’s super simple.

“For many businesses – in particular retailers – PayTo lowers the cost of doing business, while also helping to mitigate the risk of fraud. As a result, we’re seeing more businesses adopting PayTo, and we expect this to continue into 2025 and beyond,”

Australia is widely regarded by many industry stakeholders and observers as a leader in Open Banking and instant payment technology, rivalling other established markets in the space including the UK and the Nordics.

The principles of data symmetry adopted in Australia have been cited by some, like Bank of APIs Head of Regulation and Standards, Stephen Wright, as a key reason as to why the country has been able to make substantial gains in areas like Open Banking and account-to-account payments.

This is not to say that Australia’s instant payments journey has been entirely smooth, however. Last year, for example, the Australian Banking Association (ABA) expressed disappointment at the lack of consumer engagement with the lack of engagement with the Consumer Data Right (CDR) four years after its adoption.

The ABA, Australian government and other key stakeholders may be encouraged by the integration of pay-by-bank methods into platforms like Amazon, building on similar partnerships involving NAB such as one with global fintech Banked. Deals such as these could play their part in encouraging wider adoption of instant payments in Australia.

Sujit Misra, Director of APAC Payments for Amazon, said: “At Amazon we always follow the lead of our customers, and as we continue to see their preferences shift toward banking apps and instant payment methods, we are excited to add PayTo as a payment option on Amazon.com.au.

“This adds a simple, secure and convenient payment solution ensuring our customers have choice and can pay according to their preferences when they checkout on Amazon.”