Structuring for the future: Systemic payments reform in Australia

Abstract

A perceived need for systemic change has driven regulators and governments to push for systemic reform within their national payments systems. This has recently been experienced in Australia with the Reserve Bank of Australia’s Strategic Review of Innovation in the Payments System, which concluded in mid-2012. The Australian industry responded to the policy objectives of the RBA with a February 2013 proposal to develop new infrastructure to deliver fast payments by 2016. This outcome has been many years in the making within the context of a robust policy dialogue between the Reserve Bank of Australia, as the public regulator for payments, and the Australian industry, through the Australian Payments Clearing Association. This dialogue between the regulator and industry has been essential in finding broad agreement on the direction of systemic change that seeks to achieve public policy outcomes while providing opportunities for sustainable innovation by industry participants.