Volt Bank: the neobank aiming to spark new life into Aussie banking

Although its banking products are still firmly under lock and key at the moment, Sydney-based neobank Volt promises to amp up the power soon and open its digital doors to the public.

What does Volt Bank specialise in?

Established two years ago in 2017, fintech start-up Volt Bank aims to do everything from term deposits to personal loans, but for now the neobank will start by offering savings accounts.

Volt Bank became the first neobank in Australia to receive a full Authorised-deposit-taking institution licence (ADI) from the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA), in January this year. This licence is key, as it guarantees that if you have savings up to $250,000 with Volt, your hard earned money will be protected by the Australian government’s financial claims scheme.

What is Volt Bank’s vision?

The Volt vision is quite simply to ‘help people to be better off.’

In a recent Q&A discussion, CEO Steve Weston said he was inspired by his time living and working in banking in the UK, to venture into the world of digital banking in Australia, with Co-Founder Luke Bunbury.

And of course, Volt Bank promises to be much more than just another bank, vying for customers across the country. The neobank aims to use the latest in digital technology, including that provided by Swiss banking software provider Temenos to shake up not only the world of banking, but also the world of digital banking.

Volt Bank offers savings accounts that customers can set-up in just 60 seconds, with advanced security measures such as biometric identification and OCR (optical character recognition). 

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What makes Volt’s savings accounts special?

Volt Bank has just revealed its 2.15% savings account interest rate, as well as a few other enticing features. For instance, if you often find yourself having to dip in and out of your savings, you’ll be happy to hear that regardless of how much you put in or take out, you’ll still be able to earn interest. There are no minimum monthly deposits and as Volt Bank puts it there are ‘no penalties for using your own money.’

On top of all that, Volt Bank promises not to charge any monthly account keeping fees, not one at all. And besides all of these great fee-free incentives, this Aussie neobank will also give you little tips and tricks to help you grow your savings more, including nudges and positive encouragement to remind you to stash some cash.

What other banking products will Volt offer?

Word on the street is, Volt Bank intends to not only offer savings accounts, but also everyday transaction accounts, term deposits and even after some time personal loans, home loans and credit cards, after which it has plans to move into the small business banking sector.

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When can I join Volt?

At some point in the not-too-distant future you might be able to do all your banking with Volt. But for now you can easily join the waitlist, to be one of the first to try out Volt’s savings accounts. The neobank is due to launch in spring 2019, so it should be any day now.

Plus, if putting your name on the waitlist isn’t enough to float your neobank boat, you can even download the Volt Labs app and join the community helping to build the bank. This way you can offer up your own ideas and be the first to test-out new features and products.

Interested to discover more about the intricate world of neobanks? Why not check out our dedicated neobanks hub to find out about other digital banks and banking products.