If you are purchasing or selling a house in NSW is it likely that you have heard of the word PEXA. PEXA is an acronym for Property Exchange Australia. It is a public company with majority shareholders owned by Link, Commonwealth Bank and Morgan Stanley that completes around 20,000 settlements a week or 80% of all settlements that use PEXA within Australia.
Essentially, PEXA is a platform or multi-level digital workspace that allows settlements to occur in the digital world in real time. PEXA’s platform is integrated with six Land Titles Offices, five State Revenue Offices and the Reserve Bank of Australia and facilitates property settlements on behalf of more than 160 financial institutions and 9,400 practitioner firms.
PEXA also provides for:
- preparation of electronic dealings and verification of lodgment acceptability
- electronic settlement of real property transactions including payment of settlement monies, duties, taxes and any other disbursements, and
- electronic lodgment of dealings to the appropriate Land Registry.
PEXA has uploaded an introductory video on youtube for more information.
PEXA Security
PEXA have significant security protocols in place in terms of access, only authorised individuals and companies with prioir identification checks can access the system. The system is password protected and digital keys are used when “signing” off or finalising instructions before any matter can be dealt with. PEXA digital Key uses encrypted data for all bank details requested and shared in the app. Any details entered via the app are instantly and securely delivered into the accompanying PEXA Exchange workspace.
According to PEXA it “has robust fraud protections and strict authentication procedures built into its platform”.
The introduction of PEXA has done away with traditional exchanges that were conducted in person and allowed for those savings to be passed onto clients.
If you have concerns about using PEXA we encourage you to contact us or your relevant conveyancer/solicitor to discuss the issue.