Billionaire miner Andrew Forrest is getting into fintech

Western Australian mining magnate Andrew “Twiggy” Forrest is moving into the fintech space, backing consumer-to-business payments startup Azupay, taking an undisclosed majority stake through his investment company Tattarang.

Azupay is the first and only to go live on the New Payments Platform (NPP), which is being implemented by the NSW Government’s Department of Customer Service.

Azupay allows instant ‘cash-like’ payments from a user’s bank account via a single-use PayID that can via QR code or manually in existing banking apps.

The fintech is hoping to introduce its tech into the retail, travel, telco and utility sectors, gaining ground as a cheaper alternative to existing high-cost payments

Tattarang Chief Investment Officer, John Hartman, said Azupay was “an important innovation because it offers Australian consumers and businesses a viable, cheaper and debt-free payment alternative” to high cost credit card fees.

Azupay founder and CEO Jean-Marc Barthe, said they saw an incredible opportunity to harness the potential of NPP to save people money.

“The Azupay service is just the first step; our intention is to become a payments leader heralding responsible spending in both Australia and internationally,” he said.

Forrest changed the name of his private family investment fund from Minderoo to Tattarang earlier this year to avoid confusion with his charitable organisation, the Minderoo Foundation.