Eligible small business customers can receive a real-time credit decision and have the funds (up to $50,000) credited in their account within 20 minutes.

To-date, BizExpress has been used by CBA’s business bankers to support customers, meaning the functionality was used internally. The online roll out of the product direct to customers has been fast-tracked to help small businesses get immediate access to funding as the country looks to recover from the worst effects of the coronavirus pandemic.

“When we launched ‘BizExpress’, the aim was to provide a simpler and faster lending experience for our small business customers, with same day decisions and funding within a week,” says CBA group executive business banking, Mike Vacy-Lyle. “Our latest investment in the new digital version makes it even easier and quicker for our customers to get the financial support they need. BizExpress Online not only provides a lending decision in record time, but also enables a customer to have the funds in their account in near real-time, in as little as 20 minutes,” Mr Vacy-Lyle said.

BizExpress Online will initially offer new business loans under the Government’s SME Guarantee Scheme, under which repayments will be deferred for the first six months and all fees waived for the life of the loan. Over the coming months, the service will be extended beyond the Government programme and for a broader set of products.

CBA rival ANZ has also rolled out a similar, though less speedy, platform, promising conditional credit approvals for SMEs within 20 minutes.

Developed in partnership with DemystData, ANZ Online Business Lending syncs with Accounting Software Platforms (ASPs) Xero, QuickBooks and MYOB.

Businesses connect their ASPs to the bank’s credit platform to share historical financial information, allowing ANZ to provide a decision on conditional lending in less than 20 minutes and full approval within two days.