Australian neo bank Volt is to build its branchless digital banking platform in the cloud, using a software-as-a-service package from Swiss core banking vendor Temenos.
Co-founded by former NAB and Barclays exec Steve Weston, Volt is the first firm to be granted a restricted authorised deposit-taking institution (Radi) licence by the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority.
The new licence, which launched earlier this month, is designed to bring competition to a market dominated by four big players, enabling new entrants to carry out a limited range of activities for two years "while they build their capabilities and resources".
Volt, which has raised $15.7 million and has 35 staff, will initially offer savings and transaction accounts, term deposits and foreign exchange, before moving into personal loans, mortgages and credit cards as it transitions to a full licence.
Steve Weston, CEO, volt bank, comments: “As the first digital bank in Australia, we are using technology to challenge the way banking is done. Temenos’ Cloud will allow us to launch quickly and at the same time meet Australian regulations. Incumbent banks in Australia have grown complacent and benefited from the inertia that comes from the difficulty of changing banks. With Temenos software, we can adapt to the customers’ changing needs, reduce costs and innovate faster. Our digital bank will be a trailblazer in a new era of banking and every experience we offer will be mobile-led, personalized and customer focused.”