Commonwealth Bank has launched PaidIt to help organisations send refunds, settlements and other payouts when recipient details are incomplete or outdated.

The platform combines recipient verification, communication and payment delivery.

Its matching engine applies identity and account checks to determine which payments can be automated and which require further review.

PaidIt uses Australia’s New Payments Platform, PayID and ConnectID to verify recipients and deliver funds.

Commonwealth Bank said the median process takes less than two minutes from the start of a recipient’s claim to the money reaching their account.

The launch comes as Australia prepares to phase out cheques in 2028, leaving organisations to find other ways to pay people when their banking details are unavailable.

Commonwealth Bank already uses PaidIt in some cases involving missing or outdated payment information. Additional features will be introduced over time.

The bank plans to roll out the platform to more of its business units and make it available to Corporate and Institutional Banking clients in the coming months.

PaidIt was developed by x15ventures, Commonwealth Bank’s venture scaling arm.

“Managing any kind of payout can be complex, but things become so much harder when you don’t have complete or current information about the person you’re trying to pay. No one really benefits in these situations.

While organisations often invest considerable effort and resources trying to complete the payment, it can be weeks, months – or even years – before people receive money they’re owed, with some funds ultimately remaining unclaimed.”

said Maja Enander, Managing Director of PaidIt.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission currently holds approximately A$2.7 billion in unclaimed money. State and territory governments hold additional funds.

Regis Petit, Executive General Manager, Institutional Transaction Banking, Commonwealth Bank, said,

“PaidIt is one way we’re helping clients navigate that transition and shows how we can bring Commonwealth Bank’s deep payments expertise together with x15ventures’ venture-building capability to tackle complex institutional challenges.

It’s still early days, but the interest we’re seeing from clients is encouraging and reinforces our belief that PaidIt can make a real difference.”

Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Australia, based on image by Commonwealth Bank