Fintel Alliance and AUSTRAC subject matter experts completed three intensive 'days of action' focused on identifying individuals suspected of purchasing explicit material.
The analyst group consisted of seven Fintel Alliance bank members and one non-member bank. They were guided by AUSTRAC's Child Sexual Exploitation Response Team's (CSERT) subject matter experts and used their combined collection and analytical capabilities to conduct a joint analysis of transactional data that uncovered suspicious payments to vulnerable minors.
Ten individuals made payments that indicated purchases of child sexual exploitation material self-produced by Australian minors.
These individuals were assessed as being of significant interest and were referred to law enforcement based on their activity and risk profile.
Their details, along with extra analysis provided by industry and CSERT, were shared with the Australian Federal Police led Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation (ACCCE) and State Joint Anti-Child Exploitation Taskforces.
AUSTRAC CEO Brendan Thomas said Fintel Alliance is honing its data analytics capabilities and becoming even more effective in unmasking criminal behaviour.
"Fintel Alliance is equipped and mobilised to identify suspicious transactions, and we are putting child sex offenders on notice - if you are buying child sexual exploitation material, we will join the dots and we will refer you to law enforcement," Mr Thomas said.
The multi-day effort in November 2025 marks the third collaborative event of its kind, but it is also the first time a new typology was applied to the data.
"Working side by side, members were able to quickly uncover complex patterns and insights that would have remained hidden without this level of teamwork," Mr Thomas said.
"By combining expertise and data, we've been able to identify individuals who may be exploiting vulnerable children and provide actionable intelligence to law enforcement.
"Intensive collaboration through Fintel Alliance deepens industry understanding and allows other financial institutions to strengthen their systems against this crime type, resulting in a stronger financial system overall."
Insights from the activities and ongoing work will inform how future Fintel Alliance collaborative analytics hub projects are structured and delivered, ensuring even better efforts against serious financial crime, regardless of the type.
"Child sexual exploitation isn't just happening overseas - offenders in our own communities are willing to pay for explicit material produced by vulnerable Australian children.
"Every payment fuels harm. If you suspect someone is involved in online child sexual exploitation report it immediately to the Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation. Together, we can protect children and stop these crimes."
Fintel Alliance member quotes
Westpac's General Manager, Financial Crime, Jodie Arthur said public and private sector collaboration is critical to help keep children safe and shut down offenders who operate in within our communities.
"The work we do with AUSTRAC and alongside other banks through the Fintel Alliance is essential to uncover patterns of harm faster and provide law enforcement with actionable intelligence. It also helps to strengthen the community and banking system by sharing new insights that allow us to better detect and disrupt this activity in the future."
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NAB Executive Group Money Laundering Reporting Officer, Dr Nathan Newman said joint collaboration between industry, government and law enforcement remains critical to confronting and tackling these abhorrent crimes, and protecting the most vulnerable members of our society.
"NAB takes child exploitation very seriously and has taken an industry-leading role in the fight against sextortion of minors. Participating in the Fintel Alliance allows us to leverage advanced data analytics to better protect our customers and the community and strengthen our ability to safeguard our industry against this activity."
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ANZ Group General Manager Financial Crime Risk, Cassandra Hewett, said Fintel Alliance is driving innovative, cross sector solutions that strengthen detection, build collective capability, and enable smarter, intelligence led action to prevent harm.
"This work is especially vital in confronting horrific crimes like child exploitation, which inflict profound and lasting damage on victims, families and communities. These outcomes demonstrate the power of shared capability to better protect vulnerable people in Australia and abroad. ANZ is proud to contribute its expertise to support these efforts and stop those who seek to cause harm."
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CBA General Manager, Financial Crime Compliance, Daniel Loffi said CBA thanks its partners across the banking sector and AUSTRAC for its role in coordinating activity which continues to break new ground in unifying private and public sector capability.
"CBA remains committed to lawful action which protects all members of our community and in particular our most vulnerable community members."
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About the analysis
Analysts were looking for indicators that suggested adults were purchasing domestically produced explicit material. The activity they focused on was spread across multiple banks, which would normally make it difficult for any single institution to see the full picture. By pooling data and expertise, the team aimed to uncover this activity and flag individuals whose behaviour strongly indicated involvement in purchasing child exploitation material. This collaborative approach strengthens our ability to unmask offenders, support law enforcement, and protect vulnerable members of the community. The banks that participated in the days of action were:
- ANZ
- Bendigo Bank
- CBA
- HSBC
- Macquarie Bank
- NAB
- Westpac
- Suncorp Bank
About Fintel Alliance
Fintel Alliance is an ongoing public-private partnership led by AUSTRAC and dedicated to fighting financial crime. It brings together government agencies and industry partners to share intelligence and expertise. By combining data, technology and specialist knowledge, the Alliance creates a more complete picture of financial crime than any single organisation could achieve alone, enabling faster detection and disruption of serious criminal activity.
