Objective

The objective of this Access Regime is to promote competition and efficiency in the Australian payments system, having regard to:

1. the interests of current participants in the ATM system;
2. the interests of people who, in the future, may want access to the ATM system;
3. the public interest; and
4. the financial stability of the ATM system.

Application

1. This Access Regime is imposed under Section 12 of the Payment Systems (Regulation) Act 1998.
2. This Access Regime applies to the payment system operated within Australia known as the ATM system, which was designated as a payment system on 10 December 2008 and is referred to in this Access Regime as the ATM system.
3. In this Access Regime:

‘Access Provider’ has the same meaning as in the ATM Access Standard;

‘Access Seeker’ has the same meaning as in the ATM Access Standard;

an ‘ATM’ means an automatic teller machine in Australia;

‘ATM Access Standard’ means the ATM Access Standard developed and administered by AusPayNet with a commencement date of 1 October 2025, as in force on that date;

an ‘ATM Acquirer’ has the same meaning as in the ATM Access Standard;

an ‘ATM Issuer’ has the same meaning as in the ATM Access Standard;

an ‘ATM sub-network’ is a component of the ATM system for which access is provided on a multilateral basis, rather than by bilateral negotiation, and for which there is a common, multilateral interchange fee;

‘ATM transaction’ means a cash withdrawal, balance enquiry, or any other service obtained from an ATM in the ATM system in Australia;

‘AusPayNet’ means Australian Payments Network Limited (ACN 055 136 519);

‘AusPayNet’s 2008 costs survey’ is the survey, conducted by AusPayNet, of the estimated incremental direct costs to Access Providers of providing to an Access Seeker a Direct Connection Service or a Direct Clearing/Settlement Service, the final results of which were supplied to the Reserve Bank of Australia in November 2008;

‘Connection Agreement’ has the same meaning as in the ATM Access Standard;

‘Connection Charge’ means the charge payable by an Access Seeker to an Access Provider under a Connection Agreement as described in Clause 3 of Schedule 3 of the ATM Access Standard;

‘Direct Clearing/Settlement Service’ has the same meaning as in the ATM Access Standard;

‘Direct Connection Service’ has the same meaning as in the ATM Access Standard;

‘Direct Connector’ means a participant that exchanges ATM transaction messages, and clears and settles ATM transactions using two or more direct connections;