NAB partners with large accounting firm to bypass bookkeepers

As an ex-NAB small business client I confess a biased against the bank and their archaic computer systems.

You could probably tell that from blog post where they asked their NAB Dee Why branch clients to temporarily change their BSB number while there is some property development in the Dee Why square (where I had my first computer training centre)!

While I’m putting down the NAB bank for small business I should point out that these were amongst the other reasons that I moved from NAB to CBA:

1. I was told I needed to have a separate bank account altogether from my business account to have a debit card – they’re all combined in one account with CBA, save time and complexity come bank reconciliation time.
2. If I needed a statement that was older than about 60 days I would have to order one – very painful when doing bank recs or BAS’s and asked for source statements! – CBA enable you to go back 2 years and even up to 7 easily and for no extra charge.
3. I needed to complete a deposit slip and enter all of the bank account details on the rare occasion I banked a cheque – CBA you give them your card and the cheque and they bank it for you and give you a printed receipt of the deposit

Breaking News! New credit card for PwC Airtax

So when I read the announcement that a high tech innovation incubator put out a press release that used almost every single keyword you’d want to use to show off exactly how tech savvy you were and how invested you are in innovation in our great country, I was quite interested to learn more. These are the words used in the email I received:

In collaboration with PwC, NAB’s innovation hub, NAB Labs, has developed a Visa Debit card for customers using the Airtax platform. The service is part of both NAB and PwC’s ongoing commitment to supporting Australian business innovation.

Now, I don’t know about you but aren’t we just talking about a credit card that keeps track of expenses? or are we talking about a partnership between accounting software (ie Airtax) and a banking system? Is this cashbook software? Can someone please tell me why this is newsworthy? Oh, and while we’re at it, is this really a platform or is it bookkeeping software?

Is PwC now competing with ALL accounting firms AND Xero and MYOB?

We earlier wrote about whether Xero is the easiest accounting software to use and how Xero is growing their users massively with the aid of accountants who use the software to essentially offer cashbook accounting for their small clients who don’t need to buy accounting software. This recent announcement really just seems like a soft launch for accounting software (with VERY basic capabilities) that is trying to catch everyones attention because they are focussing on Uber drivers.

As far as NAB, come on, aren’t you just outsourcing your own investment in decent banking systems to try to catch up to the market leader?

Most interesting is the ATO’s GST ruling for Uber drivers

The most interesting thing about this conversation is what caused these two massive companies to start catering to such a micro business market and it points to a ruling that requires Uber drivers to start charging and paying GST from the first dollar they earn.

If you are interested in free accounting software from PwC this is their URL (https://airtax.io/), but you should also check out these companies who provide more functionality and have been doing so for years already:

• Freshbooks
• Zoho Accounts
• Wave Apps

Are you a bookkeeper or accountant for an Uber driver? We’d love to hear from you. Where does this leave bookkeepers and accountants?