Financial Counselling Australia

What Financial Counselling Australia does

Financial Counselling Australia (FCA) is the national peak body for financial counsellors in Australia, founded in 1984 and headquartered at 469 La Trobe Street, Melbourne. FCA is a not-for-profit organization funded primarily through government grants that coordinates the National Debt Helpline (1800 007 007), the Small Business Debt Helpline (1800 413 828), and a national network of face-to-face financial counselling agencies across all Australian states and territories. The organization is the recognized national voice for the financial counselling profession, coordinating seven state and territory professional associations, providing training and professional development, maintaining national standards, and advocating to Treasury, ASIC, ACCC, and AFCA for fairer consumer outcomes.

FCA's core service is the National Debt Helpline, a free phone, live chat, and online service accessible via ndh.org.au, which delivered 183,228 client contacts in FY 25/26 (9% growth year-over-year) and recorded 800,000+ website page views. Supporting products include the FCA Toolkit (a members-only resource portal at toolkit.org.au), the NDH Data Portal, the National Minimum Data Set and Financial Counselling Outcomes Framework, the Financial Counselling Foundation (grants and scholarships), and an annual conference. FCA does not sell a technology platform or charge end users; it generates no commercial revenue, with all services delivered free and funded through government grants and sector partnerships.

FCA's business model is coordinated advocacy and service delivery rather than product commercialization. Customer segments are individuals experiencing financial hardship and small businesses in financial difficulty, with an additional focus on First Nations communities disproportionately affected by scams. Reported client outcomes include 74% avoiding legal action, 69% gaining a more positive outlook, 66% resolving financial difficulties, 63% improving mental wellbeing, 53% avoiding bankruptcy, and 45% improving physical health. Recent strategic activity centers on policy advocacy (insurance 'poverty premium' campaign with Financial Rights Legal Centre, July 2026) and scam disruption (National Anti-Scam Centre fusion cell participation, July 2026).

Name

Financial Counselling Australia

Legal name

Financial Counselling Australia

Website

https://financialcounsellingaustralia.org.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Financial Counselling Australia is the national peak body for financial counsellors, coordinating the free National Debt Helpline (1800 007 007) and Small Business Debt Helpline that serve Australians experiencing financial hardship across all states and territories.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Not-for-Profit Financial Counselling Services

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940)

SIC

Finance Services (6199)

akta.pro primary industry

Financial Coaching & Budgeting Advisory (FSAEAAAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Financial Planning Tools & Financial Coaching (Goal Setting, Apps, Advisors) (EDAAAJAN), Collections & Creditor Negotiation Support (Debtor-Side) (FSAEAFAI), Financial Hardship & Forbearance Assistance (FSAEAFAJ)

Keywords

• Financial counselling services
• Debt helpline support
• Not-for-profit advocacy
• Financial hardship support
• Small business debt advice

Headquarters

HQ city

Melbourne

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Government Funding and Grants: FCA operates as a not-for-profit organization funded primarily through government grants and funding arrangements to coordinate the National Debt Helpline and support the financial counselling sector.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Financial Counselling Australia is the national peak body for the financial counselling sector in Australia, founded in 1984. It delivers free financial counselling and debt advice to individuals through the National Debt Helpline (1800 007 007) and to small businesses through the Small Business Debt Helpline (1800 413 828), alongside policy advocacy, sector coordination, professional training, and a data portal tracking financial counselling outcomes.

Product overview

Financial Counselling Australia (FCA) operates as a not-for-profit peak body providing a suite of interconnected service offerings rather than a technology product platform. The core service is the National Debt Helpline (NDH), a free telephone and online financial counselling service available via 1800 007 007, complemented by a dedicated Small Business Debt Helpline (1800 413 828). Supporting these client-facing services are internal tools including the FCA Toolkit (a resource portal for financial counselling professionals) and the National Debt Helpline Data Portal for statistical reporting. FCA also provides advocacy, training, and professional development services to build sector capacity, operates the Financial Counselling Foundation for grants and scholarships, and maintains an Outcomes Framework for national data collection.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• National Debt Helpline (NDH): A free service providing support to people experiencing financial difficulty, available via phone (1800 007 007), live chat, and self-help guides on ndh.org.au.
• Small Business Debt Helpline
• NDH Data Portal

Products and services

• National Debt Helpline

Quantifiable outcome

• 74% of clients avoid legal action
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• National Anti-Scam Centre (ACCC)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 July 2026FCA participates in the National Anti-Scam Centre's fusion cell to target 'scambling' (fake online gambling platforms). This cross-sector collaboration brings together law enforcement, government agencies, regulators, banks, telcos, and community services to disrupt scams targeting Australians, particularly First Nations communities.
• Financial Rights Legal CentrecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 July 2026Joint advocacy calling on insurers to end the 'poverty premium' where people on lower incomes pay more for insurance due to paying by instalments. Collaboration on policy advocacy for consumer protection in insurance markets.
• State and Territory Financial Counselling AssociationscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFCA coordinates with seven professional financial counselling associations across Australian states and territories to provide consistent national standards, training, and support for the financial counselling profession.
• Banking and Telecommunications ProviderscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration within the National Anti-Scam Centre fusion cell with banks and telecommunications providers to disrupt scams and protect consumers, particularly First Nations communities.
• Digital PlatformscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership within the National Anti-Scam Centre fusion cell to address scambling and other online scams through coordinated disruption efforts with digital platforms.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Christians Against Poverty (CAP): UK charity providing free debt help, money coaching, and financial life-skills courses through a national network of local centers. Comparable to FCA in delivering free debt counselling and budgeting coaching via a distributed service network.
• StepChange Debt Charity: UK's largest free debt advice charity, operating a national helpline and online debt advice tools for individuals in financial difficulty. Closest international analogue to FCA's National Debt Helpline model, with similar funding mix, helpline-based delivery, and policy advocacy role.
• Money Advice Plus (adviceUK network): UK not-for-profit providing free, specialist debt advice to people in vulnerable circumstances. Comparable to FCA's mission of free, professional financial counselling for hardship cases, though operating as a single delivery organization rather than a federated peak body.
• Financial Rights Legal Centre: Australian not-for-profit legal centre providing free advice and advocacy on financial hardship, debt, credit, and insurance issues. Direct peer of FCA - it partners with FCA on the poverty-premium advocacy and serves overlapping consumer-hardship segments in Australia.
• Good Shepherd Microfinance: Australian not-for-profit providing no-interest and low-interest loans, financial coaching, and community programs for people on low incomes. Comparable to FCA as a free or subsidized provider of financial counselling and capability building for financially excluded Australians.
• National Foundation for Credit Counseling (NFCC): US not-for-profit membership organization for credit counseling agencies, providing standards, accreditation, and consumer-facing financial counseling services. Highly comparable to FCA as a national peak body coordinating a federation of counseling agencies.
• Salvation Army Money Care (Australia): Australian arm of The Salvation Army providing free financial counselling, budget coaching, and emergency relief. Comparable to FCA's face-to-face financial counselling agencies; often a referral partner within FCA's network.

Regional players

• National Association of Community Legal Centres: Australian peak body for community legal centres, structurally analogous to FCA as a national peak coordinating a federated state/territory member network. Comparable governance and funding model rather than overlapping consumer financial service delivery.
• Consumer Credit Legal Service (WA): Western Australian not-for-profit legal service specializing in credit, debt, and consumer finance law. Comparable to FCA's advocacy and hardship-counselling remit but operating only in Western Australia rather than nationally.

Broad incumbents

• MoneySmart (ASIC): Australian Securities and Investments Commission's free consumer financial education and money-management website. Comparable to FCA's ndh.org.au self-help guides; ASIC is also a direct FCA partner/regulator, making MoneySmart the leading government incumbent in consumer financial education.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/FCAupdate
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/financial-counselling-australia

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

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 Financial Counselling Australia