Afterpay and Westpac team up to offer transaction and savings account

Buy now pay later giant Afterpay and major bank Westpac have announced they'll be joining forces. 

As part of the Westpac Group’s new digital bank-as-a-service platform, Afterpay will introduce savings accounts and cash flow tools to its customers. 

Back in November of last year, Westpac said it would invest in the digital banking platform as part of its full year results and this appears to have now come to fruition. 

Chief executive Peter King said fintech innovation is reshaping the way Aussies bank and how the traditional bank needs to keep up. 

“Our new digital banking platform is part of our long-term strategy to support this trend and better respond to changing customer needs,” he said. 

“The platform allows us to combine our banking experience with the innovation of our partners to support new customer experiences. We look forward to working with Afterpay to deliver new products and services.”

How does Westpac’s bank-as-a-service platform work? 

Westpac’s digital bank-as-a-service platform is designed to use cloud-native technology from UK-based banking technology provider 10x Future Technologies. 

Ultimately, it is a standalone platform which will allow Westpac to expand its banking capability through partnerships with other financial companies. 

This is where Afterpay comes in. 

Through the platform, Afterpay’s 3.3 million Aussie customers will be offered Westpac transaction and savings accounts, as well as other cash flow management tools. 

Afterpay is the first company to partner with Westpac in this new venture. 

“We believe Australians deserve greater support and insight to help manage their money. Together with the power of our retail platform, the latest banking technology from 10x, and the support of Westpac, we will begin by offering cash flow management in a simple way,” Afterpay chief executive, Anthony Eisen said. 

“Afterpay is in a unique position to extend and deepen the relationship with our customers and help them to manage their money more seamlessly through savings and budgeting tools. For Afterpay, this is clearly just the beginning as we explore this opportunity globally.” 

These transaction and savings products from Afterpay and Westpac are set to become available in the second quarter of 2021. 

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