The National Australia Bank Ltd. (ASX: NAB) share price is in the green this morning amid news the bank is upping its hold on the health payments space.
NAB's health payments subsidiary HICAPS – utilised by all of Australia's private health funds and more than 94,000 health service providers – has proposed to acquire digital health claiming technology business, LanternPay.
At the time of writing, the NAB share price is $29.40, 0.55% higher than its previous close.
For context, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has gained 0.2% this morning.
Let's take a closer look at what could be NAB's next purchase.
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NAB share price higher amid new payments purchase
The NAB share price is moving higher on Thursday. Meanwhile, the bank has proposed to acquire a payment technology start-up promising to deliver real-time approvals and faster payments from medical healthcare schemes.
LanternPay is designed to simplify payments processes for medical providers working alongside schemes such as Medicare, workers compensation, and the National Disability Insurance Service (NDIS).
The bank plans to integrate the technology into HICAPS – an acronym for Health Industry Claims and Payments Service.
If all goes to plan, it expects that a new digital HICAPS will be rolled out over the course of this year.
Additionally, according to reporting by the Australian Financial Review, the purchase could lead to a HICAPS app that may see Australians paying for treatments with smartphones at practices without payment terminals.
On the proposed acquisition, NAB's group executive for business and private bank Andrew Irvine commented:
The healthcare sector is already one of the country's largest providers of employment, and the fifth largest contributor to Australia's GDP. Australian healthcare payment systems have been cumbersome – resulting in disjointed payment experiences for patients and complexity for healthcare providers.
Integrating NAB's HICAPS with LanternPay technology will over time deliver a seamless digital customer experience… Customers who previously might have waited days for a reimbursement from the NDIS for example, will now receive this payment on the spot. For many Australians, this will be an absolute game changer.
LanternPay is owned by platform developer, InLoop. The acquisition is subject to conditions including regulatory approval.
It follows the acquisition of Whitecoat by Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) last year. The digital healthcare services directory is continuing its pivot towards payment services in the wake of the acquisition.
Right now, the NAB share price is 1.9% higher than it ended in 2021.
