A major milestone has been reached which will allow for competition in eConveyancing, with Commonwealth and state ministers today welcoming the first successful property transactions taking place between Electronic Lodgement Network Operators (ELNOs).
Currently all lawyers, conveyancers and banks involved in electronic conveyancing (eConveyancing) property settlement transactions must use the same ELNO.
Interoperability will allow for competition and is the next stage in eConveyancing reform, bringing together industry and government stakeholders to deliver a competitive market of ELNO operators.
This week, Day 1 Transactions were successfully completed allowing for 2 properties to be refinanced in Queensland, testing the interoperability technical solution developed by ELNOs over several years.
The 2 ELNOs, Property Exchange Australia Limited (PEXA) and Sympli Australia Pty Ltd (Sympli), along with Commonwealth Bank of Australia, National Australia Bank and Titles Queensland, participated in the transactions and ensured they were successfully completed.
The transactions pave the way for the next stage of the reform, which is to deliver interoperability functionality into the market that will eventually be rolled out Australia-wide. ELNOs have until July 2025 to reach this milestone and are expected to develop all functionality by December 2025.
More information on the Day 1 Transactions are available on the Australian Registrars’ National Electronic Conveyancing Council (ARNECC) websitelaunch.
NSW Minister for Customer Service and Digital Government Jihad Dib said:
“I’m very pleased the Day 1 Transactions have been a success, as a first step towards competition in the electronic conveyancing market to ensure competitive prices and enable more innovation for customers.
“The Minns Government is fully committed to this critical reform and achieving this milestone is the result of significant work and collaboration over several years across jurisdictions.”
Federal Assistant Minister for Competition Andrew Leigh said:
“This milestone represents a significant step towards unlocking much needed competition in the eConveyancing market. A move away from a monopoly service provider to robust competition is great news for consumers, who will likely see the benefits of cheaper and more innovative services.
“I would like to thank all stakeholders for their ongoing dedication to the reform which could not have been achieved without considerable contributions from industry and governments, working together through the Australian Registrars’ National Electronic Conveyancing Council.”