An Administrator’s guide to getting started with Online Banking for Business

Step 1: Activate a security device

To approve payments or make changes in Online Banking, you’ll need a security device – either a Westpac Protect™ SMS Code or a SecurID® token. A security device helps to keep you and your staff safe online. We recommend that you set up a security device for anyone who will do banking on behalf of your business. 

Note: You will only need a token if you or your staff are making payments over $200K, if you’re regularly in a mobile blackspot, or overseas locations.

How to activate an SMS code

How to activate a token 

1. Sign into Online Banking from a desktop
2. Select Service, then Security Settings 
3. Select Authorise token
4. Enter the serial number on the back of the SecurID® token and select Authorise.

Step 2: Set user permissions

It’s time to decide who will have access to your Online Banking and set up the people who will approve tasks like managing payees, funds transfers and opening new accounts. For example, you might do international payments, but you may only want to allow certain users to approve the payments.

You can also opt to give user access to a third party for people who work on your business, such as an accountant or bookkeeper. 

Before you set up a user you will need their:

• Full name from their ID or Westpac account (if they are already a customer)
• 8-digit customer number (if applicable)
• Date of birth
• Email address.

Here’s how to add a new user:

1. Sign into Online Banking from a desktop
2. Go to Administration, then select User administration
3. Select the Add user button
4. Enter your new user’s details, which accounts you’d like them to access and what actions you’d like them to take in Online Banking
5. Select Add user.

If a new user has not been identified by us, they will not be able to make payments. A letter can be generated from Westpac Online Banking for the user to take into any Westpac branch to be identified.

Step 3: Share access to your accounts

You have two options when sharing access to your accounts with other users in Online Banking.

1. Set up the user within your Business Network
2. Authorise your account to be visible to a third party via their Online Banking profile.

You can give your third party view only access or full edit access. You set the level of access and you’re in control. You set the level of access and you are in control.

If you add your third party in step 2, they will be set up as a user on your Business Network. If you give third party access to your account, your account will be shown within their nominated Westpac profile. Please note: If you nominate third party access outside your Business Network, you won’t be able to see their payment history in your profile.

Here’s how to add a third-party to your profile:

1. Sign into Online Banking from a desktop
2. Go to Administration, then select Account access levels
3. Select the button Add a third-party Westpac account or service
4. Complete the Third Party Access Authority form (PDF 731KB) and take it into any Westpac branch along with the new user, who will need to be identified for your security.

Step 4: Establish daily payment limits

A daily payment limit is the amount of money you and your staff can transact per day in Online Banking or the Westpac App. You can set one for the overall business and you also can set up limits for each individual user. 

Here’s how to set your business daily payment limit

Here’s how to set payment limits for each user

1. Sign into Online Banking on a desktop
2. Select Administration then Payment limits
3. Under View limit for, select a User from the drop-down menu 
4. Select Update limit, enter the new limit, then select Save.

Note: An individual user can only transact up to their daily limit and this cannot exceed your business daily payment limit. When you are increasing a user’s limit, make sure you also increase the business limit at the same time, or the transaction will fail.

Step 5: Set up your payees and payments

The final step is to set up your payees and payments. If you regularly make funds transfers, BPAY® or Pay Anyone payments, you can also create a payment template to make it easier to manage regular payments. 

Here’s how to set up a payment template

1. Sign into Online Banking
2. Navigate to Payments, then select Templates
3. Select Add new template
4. Enter a Template name and select your Payment method
5. Select the From account, Payer name and Description (optional), then select Create
6. Select the Payee, then Close.

Do you have a list of payees in a spreadsheet? You can import them to save on manual data entry.

Here’s how to import your payees

Using Microsoft Excel, create a spreadsheet with your payee’s details:

• BSB
• Account number
• Account name
• Nickname (optional).

Make sure you have formatted your BSB and account numbers as text, rather than general accounting or other Excel formats – and no headings are required.

 

Once you have completed the spreadsheet, save it as a csv file.

1. Sign into Online Banking from a desktop
2. Go to Payments, then select File Imports
3. In the Imports section, select IMPORT NEW FILE
4. Select CSV as the file type, then select File contains payees only
5. Select Payee type – Payee
6. Select Choose File to browse and select a .csv file to upload.

Match each column of your CSV file to the fields in Online Banking. Map the Payee BSB, Payee account number, Payee nickname and Payee account name then select Upload.

 

You will see a File Imported message to confirm that your file has been uploaded. You can view your payees under View details.