DEFT Payment Systems

What DEFT Payment Systems does

DEFT Payment Systems is an Australian online bill-payment platform owned and operated by Macquarie Bank Limited, established in 1995 and headquartered in Sydney. It enables individual payers to settle invoices, levies, rent, and insurance premiums via PayID (NPP), BPAY, direct debit from bank account, Australia Post (Post Billpay), and — until 1 October 2026 — debit and credit cards. Each biller is assigned a unique DEFT Reference Number (DRN), which anchors both payer-initiated and biller-initiated direct-debit flows and where applicable maps to a DEFT PayID in the format @deft.com.au. Registered users can schedule one-off, future-dated, or recurring payments, view up to 12 months of payment history, store payment credentials in a tokenised 'My Wallet,' and receive email notifications. Security is supported by 256-bit SSL, 3D Secure, PCI DSS compliance, and the ePayments Code.

The platform's commercial model is twofold. On the payer side, payments via bank account, BPAY, PayID, and Australia Post are fee-free; card payments historically carried per-transaction surcharges ranging from 0.40% (Visa/Mastercard Debit) to 4.80% (Mastercard International), which constituted DEFT's only direct transaction revenue. On the biller side, DEFT is offered exclusively to Macquarie Bank clients, with onboarding handled by relationship managers and indirect distribution layered through strata, property, and insurance software providers that embed DEFT options into billing templates. The geographic scope is constrained to Australian residents, and the primary verticals are strata management, real estate, insurance, and broader B2B billing.

Strategically, DEFT is in a defensive transition. The platform's principal revenue stream — card surcharge income — is being eliminated from 1 October 2026 in response to RBA rules prohibiting card payment surcharges, leaving DEFT as a fee-free, multi-rail bill-payment service whose economic value within Macquarie Bank will increasingly depend on indirect benefits (deposits, float, relationship stickiness) rather than explicit transaction fees.

Name

DEFT Payment Systems

Legal name

Macquarie Bank Limited

Website

https://deft.com.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

1995

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

DEFT Payment Systems is a Macquarie Bank-owned, Australia-only online bill-payment platform that enables individual payers to settle strata levies, rent, insurance premiums, and other invoices via PayID, BPAY, direct debit, and Australia Post, serving thousands of billers across strata, real estate, insurance, and general B2B verticals.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Bill Payment Processing

NAICS

Financial Transactions Processing, Reserve, and Clearinghouse Activities (52232), Financial Transactions Processing, Reserve, and Clearinghouse Activities (522320)

SIC

Finance Services (6199)

akta.pro primary industry

Bill Pay, Invoicing & Payables Platforms (BPAMAFAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

A2A Payouts & Disbursements (FSAMAFAG), Payables & Disbursements (ACH/SEPA, wires, checks, virtual cards) (FSABAIAB)

Keywords

• Online bill payments
• Payment processing platform
• Direct debit services
• BPAY payments
• PayID payments

Headquarters

HQ city

Sydney

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Card Transaction Surcharges: DEFT charges billers a fee for processing card payments. Billers may pass these surcharges on to payers. Surcharges vary by card type: Visa Debit 0.40%, Visa Credit 1.50%, Visa International 4.00%, MasterCard Debit 0.40%, MasterCard Credit 1.20%, MasterCard International 4.80%, American Express 1.5%. Note: From October 2026, card payments are being removed as a payment option.
2. Bank Account Transactions: No transaction fees charged for direct debit or bank account payments. These are fee-free for payers.
3. BPAY, PayID, and Australia Post Payments: No transaction fees charged for BPAY, PayID, or Australia Post cheque/eftpos payments.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

DEFT Payment Systems is an online payment platform owned and operated by Macquarie Bank that enables billers (strata managers, property managers, real estate agents, insurance brokers) and their customers to make and receive payments through multiple rails including PayID (NPP), BPAY, Australia Post (Post Billpay), direct debit from bank accounts, and card payments. The platform supports one-off, scheduled, and recurring payments with payment history tracking, secure tokenised card and bank storage (My Wallet), and Biller-Initiated Direct Debit (BIDD) capabilities.

Product overview

DEFT Payment Systems is a single unified online bill payment platform owned and operated by Macquarie Bank Limited. The platform enables payers to make one-off card payments without registration, or to register for a DEFT account to pay by card or bank account, set up scheduled or recurring payments, track payment history, and receive email notifications. Payment methods include PayID (via NPP), BPAY, Australia Post (in-person eftpos or cheque), and direct debit from bank account. Card surcharges vary by card type (Visa Debit 0.40%, Visa Credit 1.50%, Mastercard Credit 1.20%, Amex 1.5%). From 1 October 2026, card payment options will be removed in response to RBA surcharge regulation changes, with the platform shifting to fee-free methods.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• DEFT Online Bill Payment Platform

Quantifiable outcome

• Payments made on business days via PayID are received instantly (same business day)
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature7 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and secondary.

• Macquarie Bank LimitedcoreOthers · 1 January 1995DEFT is wholly owned and operated by Macquarie Bank Limited ABN 46 008 583 542, AFSL 237502. Macquarie provides the banking infrastructure, regulatory framework, and capital backing for DEFT operations. Billers must be Macquarie clients to use DEFT.
• NPP Australia LtdcoreTechnology or IntegrationNPP Australia operates the New Payments Platform (NPP) on which PayID payments are made. DEFT integrates with NPP's PayID system allowing payers to make instant fee-free payments from any banking app using the DEFT PayID format.
• Australia PostsecondaryChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAustralia Post offers Post Billpay services enabling DEFT payers to make in-person payments at Australia Post outlets via eftpos or cheque using the barcode provided by their biller.
• BPAY Pty LtdcoreTechnology or IntegrationBPAY is the bill payment network. DEFT integrates with BPAY allowing payers to make payments through BPAY using DEFT Biller Code and Customer Reference Number from any banking app.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Ezidebit: Ezidebit is an Australian direct debit and bill payment platform serving small businesses and recurring billing. Comparable business model focused on recurring consumer payments via direct debit, similar to DEFT's BIDD functionality.
• BPAY Group: BPAY operates the dominant Australian bill payment network that DEFT integrates with. Comparable as the underlying bill payment infrastructure that processes similar transaction types, though BPAY is a network/utility while DEFT is a biller-facing platform.
• POLi Payments: POLi Payments is an Australian online payment platform enabling direct bank transfers for bill payments and e-commerce. Comparable as a real-time account-to-account payment platform competing for Australian bill payment volume.
• Australia Post (Post Billpay): Australia Post's Post Billpay service is a direct distribution channel for DEFT payments and also a competitor offering in-person bill payment services. Both compete for biller relationships and payer payment mindshare in the Australian market.

Regional players

• Pin Payments: Pin Payments is an Australian payment processor and gateway for online businesses. Comparable in serving Australian SMB billers with online payment infrastructure, though focused more on e-commerce than recurring bill payments.

Broad incumbents

• Tyro Payments: Tyro is an Australian bank and payment provider offering EFTPOS, online payments, and bill payment services to SMBs. Comparable as an Australian-headquartered payment platform serving similar customer segments.
• Commonwealth Bank (BPAY owner): Commonwealth Bank owns BPAY and offers native bill payment, PayID, and direct debit services through its banking app. Comparable as a major Australian bank competitor offering bill payment infrastructure that competes with DEFT.
• Stripe: Stripe is a global payment infrastructure platform with growing presence in Australia offering bill payment, recurring billing, and direct debit capabilities. Competes with DEFT for enterprise biller relationships in the Australian market.
• Hub24: Hub24 is an Australian wealth platform that integrates payment and account infrastructure for advisors and their clients. Comparable as an Australian Macquarie-adjacent financial services ecosystem with payment capabilities.

Emerging players

• Pay.com.au: Pay.com.au is an Australian bill payment and payment processing platform serving SMBs with online payment infrastructure. Comparable as an emerging Australian payment platform competing for similar biller customer segments.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about DEFT Payment Systems