NAB Acquires Fintech Banked to Scale Real-Time Pay by Bank Solutions

Quick Summary

NAB has acquired account-to-account payments specialist Banked to accelerate its real-time payment capabilities. This strategic move allows NAB to offer Australian merchants a faster, lower-cost alternative to traditional card schemes by enabling direct bank-to-bank transfers at the digital checkout, improving cash flow and settlement efficiency.

How Does the Banked Acquisition Improve Merchant Payments?

By integrating Banked, NAB provides a seamless digital checkout experience that bypasses traditional credit and debit card rails. This account-to-account payments technology allows merchants to receive funds directly from a customer’s bank account, significantly reducing transaction fees and processing times. Key benefits for business owners include:

• Instant fund settlement directly into business accounts.
• Lower transaction costs compared to traditional card-based processing.
• Simplified reconciliation processes within a single banking environment.

“Importantly, Banked can offer a faster and lower‑cost way for merchants to get paid and offers a smooth checkout experience, a win-win for everyone. We are proud to provide more support to Australian businesses.” said Shane Conway, NAB Group Executive - Transformation.

What Role Does Real-Time Technology Play in NAB's Strategy?

The acquisition is the culmination of a multi-year relationship where NAB Ventures acted as a strategic minority shareholder. NAB is positioning itself at the forefront of the real-time payments shift in Australia, moving beyond cards to embrace account-to-account payments as a core offering. This strategy focuses on:

• Scaling proven technology that NAB has utilized since 2024.
• Enhancing developer tools for merchants of all sizes.
• Consolidating payment management into the unified NAB technology environment.

“The Banked team have worked hard to build a globally proven payments platform focused on the modern demands of developers and merchants of all sizes and scale. Having the backing of NAB will allow the platform to reach more customers,” said Brad Goodall, Banked CEO and co‑founder.

FF NEWS TAKE:

This acquisition is a definitive signal that the era of card-dominance is being challenged by account-to-account payments. NAB isn't just partnering; they are owning the infrastructure. By bringing Banked in-house, NAB secures a competitive moat in A2A, offering a vertically integrated stack that makes traditional gateways look expensive and slow. It absolutely moves the needle for Australian fintech, forcing other 'Big Four' banks to accelerate their own real-time payment roadmaps.