Sibos 2019: CFOs need to know about the NPP

Australia’s New Payments Platform (NPP) has transformed the landscape for payments. The speed, versatility and data-rich nature of the system presents a unique opportunity for business to take advantage of the modern digital marketplace.

Indeed, real-time payments technology like the NPP is the undisputed future of trade both domestically and across borders.

That’s why the players in the financial services sector like ANZ are committed to recognising and promoting the value of the NPP in the future, ANZ Director, Head of Clearing Services Product, Luke Perkins says.

Speaking to ANZ institutional on podcast, Perkins said while he does not doubt there is strategy behind the NPP rollout, after 18 months in the market it's “probably high time we really start to drive that that reachability piece”.

“With such a big step change in what we are able to deliver customers I would have thought there'd be a bit more awareness put out into the public arena.”

“When I look at it from an international perspective, I'd love to be able to connect cross-border transactions into the NPP network but if the reach isn't there, you're not going to deliver a consistent customer experience.”

Perkins made the comments on a podcast with ANZ Head of Wholesale Digital, Leigh Mahoney ahead of the Sibos 2019 financial services conference in London, where the future of real-time payments services is expected to be one of the key themes of discussion.

You can listen to the podcast below.

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“I would have thought there'd be a bit more awareness [of the NPP] put out into the public arena.” 
LUKE PERKINS  

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Mahoney said it is critical the industry is clear on its responsibility to ensure customers are taking advantage of the opportunity real-time payments present.

“I think that's perhaps where [banks have] a role to play… over the next 12 or 18 months,” he said. “What are the things we can do, either as a bank or an industry, to help increase adoption of these real-time systems?”

The NPP

The NPP is a real-time payment network which enables customers at participating banks and other financial groups to send and receive money on a near-instantaneous basis. Using a service called ‘PayID’, the network has the ability to process payments including more data than ever before.

You can read more about the NPP HERE.

Mahoney said the in-progress switch to the ISO 20022 standards have been a stepchange for many industry participants. Like many countries around the world, Australian institutions are in the process of aligning with the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) 20022 payments messaging standard.

The new set of rules applies to financial messaging between fund-transfer participants. By 2023, all major high-value payments systems are expected to comply with ISO 20022.

Former systems were old by market standards, with limited data capacity, Mahoney said.

“And then we went to this ISO thing which was pretty much unlimited,” he said. “It's almost like we've gone from the Flintstones to the Jetsons.”

Sibos 2019

The Sibos financial services conference is here again.

Kicking off on September 23, one of the world's premier international finance conferences will attract the most-innovative minds in the sector, setting the agenda for 2020 and offering insight into the trends and development which will shape the future of the industry.

In the lead up to and during the event ANZ Institutional will offer an insight into those themes, giving you a sneak peek at the ideas set to dominate the conference from ANZ’s industry experts and attendees themselves.

The two experts also touched on the outlook for the real-time payments space, why requesting a payment might be the next big thing in the sector, and the need for banks to focus on the service offered to customers rather than the assets required to deliver it.

Listen to the podcast above to find out more.

Arun Kayal is Associate Director, Communications & Shane White is Content Manager, ANZ Institutional