NAB acquires fintech Banked to accelerate account-to-account payments
What's the deal? National Australia Bank (NAB) has acquired Banked, a global fintech platform that enables businesses to receive payments directly from customers' bank accounts — bypassing credit and debit cards entirely. The acquisition, announced on May 14, brings in-house a company NAB had already backed through its venture capital arm, NAB Ventures, across three funding rounds in 2022, 2023, and 2024.
Banked, founded in 2018, specialises in "Pay by Bank" technology — account-to-account payments that are faster and cheaper than traditional card transactions. NAB has used Banked's technology for its business customers since 2024.
Why now? Australia's payments landscape is shifting toward real-time, account-to-account options that sit alongside cards and digital wallets. NAB said the deal positions it for long-term growth in a critical part of the economy as merchants increasingly demand lower-cost, faster payment methods.
"Customers expect making payments to be fast, easy and reliable, and Banked helps us deliver that," said Shane Conway, NAB group executive for transformation.
Banked CEO and co-founder Brad Goodall said the acquisition will help the platform scale. "Having the backing of NAB will allow the platform to reach more customers," he said.
What could go wrong? Integration is the obvious risk. NAB plans to fold Banked's group of entities — which will initially operate as wholly owned subsidiaries — into its technology environment in the coming months. Merging a startup's engineering culture with a major bank's infrastructure is notoriously difficult, and any friction could slow the rollout NAB is banking on.
There's also the question of competition. Other Australian banks and fintechs are pursuing similar account-to-account strategies, meaning NAB's head start with Banked is an advantage only if it executes quickly.
The signal: The deal reflects a broader global trend of incumbent banks acquiring the fintechs they once invested in. Rather than building from scratch, banks are buying proven technology and engineering teams to keep pace with changing customer expectations.
Account-to-account payments threaten the card networks' dominance at checkout — and banks see an opportunity to own that shift rather than be disrupted by it. NAB's move suggests major financial institutions increasingly view Pay by Bank not as a niche alternative but as a core part of their payments future.
Read more: news.nab.com.au
