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Author: Rachael Shupe

Android Pay launches in Australia

Posted on by Rachael Shupe

Android mobile phone and keys on a table

Sydney, 14 July 2016: More than 25 financial institutions are connecting to Android Pay via Cuscal today and more will follow in coming days and weeks. Overall, this will enable more than 2 million Visa and Mastercard credit and debit cards to pay with Android Pay.

Cuscal clients will be among the first financial institutions in Australia to connect to Android Pay via its ‘Pays solution’. Cuscal’s Pays solution can connect all Australian-issued Visa and Mastercard debit or credit cards directly to Android Pay, while also being flexible enough to incorporate connection to other mobile wallets and schemes in the future. Cuscal’s market-leading white-label mobile banking app also connects directly from Android Pay.

Colin Sultana, Head of EFT, Acquiring and Digital at Cuscal said:

“Fast, simple, convenient mobile payments are rapidly becoming one of the key differentiators between financial institutions. That’s why we’ve been working closely with Google for many months; to make sure our clients are able to connect to Android Pay. It’s been a complex project where we’ve worked with many different financial institutions and we’re thrilled with the end result. We’re looking forward to seeing what our clients’ customers think.”

Cuscal’s mobile banking app has already been chosen by 20 Australian financial institutions. As well as supporting Android Pay it also has its own contactless payment technology and includes functionality like biometrics, overseas travel notifications, change PIN, activate card and report lost and stolen card. The app is updated four times a year with new functionality which helps financial institutions keep pace with the rapidly changing digital world while also allowing them to compete on a level playing field with banks that have much larger individual budgets.

Media contact
Jake Waddell jwaddell@cuscal.com.au 0417 312 902

Cuscal takes 11pc stake in software company Moroku

Posted on by Rachael Shupe

Cuscal-takes-11pc-stake-in-software-company-Moroku
Sydney, 2 June 2016: Cuscal and Moroku, a Sydney-based developer of mobile banking and payments software, have agreed terms which see Cuscal take a circa 11% stake in Moroku and a seat on its Board. Cuscal’s investment is part of a broader capital raising by Moroku.

Moroku was founded in 2012 by Colin Weir and Dave Durbin. Its main business is creating immersive digital experiences to help banks connect better with customers, so increasing their competitiveness and ability to acquire more customers. In the financial services area Moroku has already developed two innovative products:

  • Game System – a platform for next generation financial service applications that employs motivational theory and gamification to build financial literacy
  • Marrakash – a cloud-based POS and business platform that supports multiple payment instruments and can be white-labelled by financial institutions

Moroku will be using the capital injection to fund further business expansion (Moroku currently has clients in six countries) and will draw on Cuscal’s financial and payments expertise, and deep integration within the Australian banking industry, to help with this expansion.

Speaking about the investment, Cuscal MD Craig Kennedy said:

The partnership with Moroku is a good fit for Cuscal. Their expertise in gamification and app development will help broaden our own capabilities and allow us to enhance our digital and mobile offering, which is an increasingly important part of our clients’ product suite.

Moroku CEO, Colin Weir said:

There has been a significant increase in banks and insurance companies showing interest in partnering with smaller technology partners across the Asia-Pacific region in the last six months. The strategic relationship we are building with Cuscal brings us great distribution and experience at an industry level, enabling Moroku to play to its strengths around innovation, designing and deploying customer centric, digital, financial applications.

Media contact
Jake Waddell jwaddell@cuscal.com.au 0417 312 902

Cuscal joins Hyperledger Project

Posted on by Rachael Shupe

Hyperledger Project logo
Sydney, 20 May 2016: Cuscal was yesterday announced as one of eight new members to join the Hyperledger Project, the collaborative blockchain effort being led by the Linux Foundation. The Project has grown 70% in membership since February this year.

The Hyperledger Project aims to build a core blockchain that can be used in a variety of industry solutions including financial services, Internet of Things, supply chains, manufacturing and technology. Companies like IBM, Accenture, J.P. Morgan, Digital Asset, Intel and ANZ are already part of Hyperledger. R3, the company which leads a consortium of financial service businesses researching potential uses of blockchain, has a seat on Hyperledger’s board.

Commenting on the announcement, Brian Parker, General Manager, Emerging Business at Cuscal said:

“We’re very pleased to join the Hyperledger Project and be able to contribute our expertise in payments and real-time processing to an exciting project.

Blockchain feels a bit like the internet felt in its earliest days. It’s a genuinely new technology, with exciting potential and clear underlying value, but we don’t yet know exactly how that value will be realised. Distributed ledger technology has the potential to greatly improve legacy systems and processes and we believe that working collaboratively is the best way to achieve this goal.”

Read more about the Hyperledger Project.

Media contact
Jake Waddell  jwaddell@cuscal.com.au  0417 312 902

Cuscal appoints new CIO and GM, Emerging Business

Posted on by Rachael Shupe

A picture of Hemant Kogekar, CIOCuscal CIO, Brian Parker, has taken on a new role as General Manager, Emerging Business. In Brian Parker’s new role his focus will be on exploring emerging business opportunities, and translating these into deliverable opportunities for clients. Brian will also continue to be the executive lead responsible for the successful end-to-end implementation of the NPP for Cuscal and its clients.

Hemant Kogekar has been appointed as Cuscal’s Chief Information Officer (CIO) for the next 12–18 months. Hemant has worked with Cuscal over the past four years as a consultant and advisor and has over 15 years’ experience as a C-level IT executive in major Australian companies including Suncorp, Citibank and Franklins.

Commenting on the restructure, Cuscal Managing Director, Craig Kennedy said:

“The payments industry is currently seeing rapid innovation including the growth of digital payments, emerging concepts such as blockchain, and the rise of non-traditional players. This means that we are operating in an extraordinarily dynamic environment.

To make sure we remain at the forefront of payments innovation, while continuing to deliver a reliable service to our clients we have decided to create a distinct focus on emerging business opportunities in payments. We are confident this will give the best result for us and our clients.”

Introducing the New Payments Platform webinar

Posted on by Rachael Shupe

This Cuscal webinar introduces the New Payments Platform (NPP), launching in 2017, and addresses some of the common questions around the NPP.

Hosted by Juvanka Roberts (Account Manager, Cuscal) and presented by Nathan Churchward (Senior Manager, Payments, Cuscal) the webinar talks about what the NPP will mean and what Cuscal is doing to prepare our clients for the NPP. The webinar also explains how the NPP will change the payments industry and how the industry itself is preparing for the NPP’s launch in 2017. Nathan also addresses several clients’ questions in the Q&A session at the end.

Mobile app now has biometrics and more

Posted on by Rachael Shupe

Lady holding moble phone using her finger print

We have recently enhanced the functionality of our white-label, full-mobile banking app to include biometrics (fingerprint login), overseas notifications and feedback form as well as enhancing some current features. The next release of extra functionality is due in April/May.

Users with an iPhone 5s and above can now sign in to the app using their fingerprint, which will be safely stored in the device. For clients which also have our Vigil Fraud Bureau Service the app will allow customers to notify us about overseas travel, ensuring their cards will continue to function normally while travelling.

Commenting on the release, Cuscal’s Head of EFT, Acquiring and Digital, Colin Sultana said:

“This latest release builds on the existing functionality, including NFC tap and pay which we were the first to introduce in the Asia-Pacific, with CUA. These latest enhancements make our mobile banking app the most advanced of any white-label solution in Australia and equal to or better than some of the big banks’ offerings.

This is a very exciting time for mobile payments in Australia with Apple Pay arriving late last year in a limited form after a deal with Amex, Android Pay launching in Australia soon and Samsung Pay likely to arrive at some point this year.”

The next release of functionality for our full mobile banking app is due in April/May 2016 and is currently scheduled to include:

  • The ability to block cards
  • New and improved look and feel to the current mobile apps