New goal for ex-Saints coach

FORMER St Kilda coach Grant Thomas has launched his own banking business.

The 60-year-old director of South Melbourne-based technology developer Ferocia has rolled out what he says is a next-generation digital banking business, called Up.

After a two-month trial involving more than 1500 customers, the digital-only group has already had transactions of more than $2.2 million.

Mr Thomas said it took a year “from start to finish” to create Up, which was launched in Melbourne yesterday.

“We think it is opening up everyone’s eyes around the industry,” he said. “There’s no doubt banks have had massive problems with legacy systems they have been providing their customers.

“We are able to start clean and fresh to provide customers a level of detail and information about their transactions that is unprecedented.”

Up allows customers aged 16 and over to open an account within a couple of minutes.

The finance group has rolled out incentives to try to attract new customers, including no monthly account fees and no overseas purchase fees.

Backed by the nation’s fifth-biggest bank, Bendigo and Adelaide Bank, Up has started rolling out debit and savings accounts.

Bendigo Bank is “white- labelling” the products — providing all the Up-branded accounts offered by the startup. Up co-founder Dom Pym said that would help give customers confidence they were safe to bank with the business.