How funds are held on a PayLocker project
Payment integrity is not a promise. It is a structure. This page sets out — plainly — where project money sits, what has to happen before it moves, who can see what, and what record is left behind when it does.
PayLocker keeps construction money connected to the project.
Where does the money actually sit?
Money paid into a PayLocker project is received into a project-specific account — an account tied to that build rather than to a participant's general trading balance. Funds remain associated with that project, and are released only where a claim has been verified, an obligation approved, and the payment recorded. PayLocker is not a bank, and does not take a position on the funds it governs.
Separation is the first control
The single most useful thing you can do with construction money is stop it mixing. Once project funds land in a general trading account, they lose their labels. The money for a frame stage, the money owed to a plumber, the money set aside for a variation and the money that funds next month's overheads all become one balance — and the connection between the dollar and the obligation it was intended to meet becomes a matter of memory and spreadsheets.
This is a system-design problem, not a character problem. Good builders manage this every day with discipline and care. PayLocker's view is simply that they shouldn't have to hold that structure in their heads. The account structure should carry it.
On a PayLocker project, funds arrive against a nominated project. They are attributed to that project. Outflows are matched against approved obligations belonging to that same project. Separation is not a feature bolted on at the end — it is the starting condition.
The path money takes — and the gates it passes through
Funds do not move because someone asks. They move because a defined sequence of conditions has been satisfied and recorded.
Diagram: PayLocker fund custody and controlled-release architecture. Account structures and the specific protections that apply are set out in PayLocker's disclosure documents and should be read alongside this page.
Five controls that sit between money and movement
These are not software features. They are the governance conditions that define a PayLocker payment.
Separation
Funds are received and held against a nominated project rather than pooled into a general trading balance, so the connection between money and project is preserved from day one.
Verification of participants
Participants are identified through KYC and KYB processes appropriate to their role — legal entity, ABN or ACN, licence details and nominated bank account — so it is clear who is entitled to be paid.
Approval before release
A claim is made against work performed or materials supplied. Approval is a distinct, recorded step — not an assumption, and not something that happens silently in the background.
Sequenced payment
Where approved obligations exceed the available balance, payments are processed in the approved order. Partial payments are recorded and the outstanding balance stays visible rather than disappearing.
Permissioned visibility
Each participant sees the information their role entitles them to see. Transparency is deliberately scoped so that governance improves without commercial confidentiality being surrendered.
Recorded accountability
What was claimed, what evidence supported it, who approved it, when, what was released and what remains outstanding — captured as a record rather than reconstructed after the fact.
Transparency, scoped by role
Open books are not the goal. Appropriate books are. A subcontractor should not see a builder's margin; a builder should not lose commercial confidentiality in exchange for governance.
| Participant | What they can see | What they cannot see |
|---|---|---|
| Homeowner / Principal | Stage amounts, phase status, progress against stages, approval status and payment release status for their own project. | Builder margin, supplier pricing, or the commercial terms of trade contracts. |
| Builder | Full project financial position — inflows, committed and approved obligations, claims, margin visibility and payment status. | Information belonging to unrelated projects or participants outside the build. |
| Contractor / Subcontractor | Their own quotes, appointments, claims, approval status and payment status — including where they sit in the approved sequence. | Other trades' pricing, the builder's margin, or the principal's funding arrangements. |
| Supplier | Their own project-linked orders, deliveries, claims and payment pathway. | Competing supply arrangements or unrelated project financials. |
| Financier | Permissioned project information supporting drawdown decisions — progress, approvals and the position of released funds. | Information beyond the scope of the permission granted for that project. |
| Developer / Principal (portfolio) | Project-level separation and consolidated reporting across their own projects. | Participant information outside their own portfolio. |
Access is permissioned by role and by project. Nothing on this page should be read as granting any participant a right of access beyond what the relevant contract and PayLocker's terms provide.
Protecting the record, not just the money
Payment integrity depends on two things being trustworthy: the movement of funds, and the record of why they moved. A compromised record is as damaging as a compromised payment, because it removes the ability to establish what was approved and on what basis.
PayLocker's security approach is therefore built around identity, integrity and evidence. Participants are verified before they can transact. Approvals are attributable to a named, authenticated user. Records are written as the project proceeds rather than assembled retrospectively, and are designed to remain available for the period the project — and the parties to it — may reasonably need them.
Data handling is governed by Australian privacy obligations, and information is shared strictly on the permissioned basis set out above.
Detailed security controls, data-handling practices and retention arrangements are described in PayLocker's disclosure and privacy documentation. Where a specific control matters to your organisation's assessment, ask us directly and we will answer in writing.
Payment governance needs a record
Integrity is not only about where money goes. It is about being able to establish, afterwards, exactly why it went there.
01 — Participant verified
Entity, licence and nominated account details captured at onboarding, establishing who is entitled to be paid.
02 — Obligation created
A quote, appointment or contract establishes the obligation and the amount it may become.
03 — Claim submitted
The claim is made against work performed or materials supplied, with supporting evidence attached.
04 — Approval recorded
Approval is captured as its own step: who approved, when, against what evidence, for what amount.
05 — Release executed
Funds are released in the approved sequence. Partial payments and outstanding balances remain visible.
06 — Record retained
The chain stands as the project's payment history — available for reconciliation, reporting and review.
Why this matters to institutional readers
Financiers assessing a drawdown, developers reporting to a board, principals reconciling a variation, or an insurer, accountant or adviser reviewing a project after the fact all ask a version of the same question: what was approved, by whom, and on what basis?
Where that answer has to be reconstructed from invoices, emails and recollection, it is slow and contestable. Where it is captured as the project proceeds, it is simply available. That difference is what PayLocker is designed to provide — better information, earlier, in a form that can be examined.
It also supports earlier visibility of outstanding obligations, approval delays and emerging funding gaps. PayLocker does not claim to prevent commercial difficulty on a project. It is designed to make the financial position of a project visible sooner than it would otherwise become.
Designed to complement the frameworks already in place
Australian governments are already legislating toward ring-fenced project money — statutory project and retention trusts in Queensland under the BIF Act, security-of-payment regimes in every state and territory, and continuing reform through bodies such as Building Commission NSW. PayLocker is built to sit alongside that direction of travel, not in place of it.
Construction contracts
The contract continues to define scope, price, stages and entitlement. PayLocker governs the payment pathway that gives effect to it.
Security-of-payment legislation
Statutory rights to claim, schedule and adjudicate are unaffected. PayLocker may help participants evidence claim and approval history within those processes.
Statutory and retention trusts
Where legislated trust arrangements apply, they apply. PayLocker does not substitute for a statutory trust or alter a party's obligations under one.
Lending and finance
Lenders continue to set credit and drawdown conditions. PayLocker can support those decisions with clearer project progress and payment information.
Insurance and warranty schemes
Cover, eligibility and claims remain with insurers and scheme administrators. PayLocker does not underwrite, insure or indemnify.
Regulators and licensing
Registration, licensing and financial-capacity assessment remain the regulator's. PayLocker can help a builder present a better-evidenced financial-capacity case.
PayLocker cannot promise that a builder will satisfy Minimum Financial Requirements more easily. It can help a builder present a stronger, more transparent and better-evidenced financial-capacity case. Nothing on this page constitutes legal, financial or regulatory advice, and no statement here should be read as an approval, endorsement or accreditation by any government body or regulator.
Being precise about what this is
PayLocker is
- Construction payment integrity infrastructure
- A payment governance platform
- A project payment governance layer
- A structured, permissioned payment environment
- A governed payment workflow with a retained record
PayLocker is not
- A bank or a deposit-taking institution
- A payment app or a general banking product
- A regulator, an insurer or a credit provider
- A replacement for construction contracts or statutory frameworks
- A replacement for builders, project managers or proper construction management
- A guarantee of any project or commercial outcome
Security & compliance questions
How are funds held on a PayLocker project?
Project money is received into a project-specific account associated with that build rather than a participant's general trading balance. Funds remain attributed to the project, and are released only where a claim has been verified, an obligation approved and the payment recorded. The specific account structure and the protections that apply are set out in PayLocker's disclosure documents.
Is PayLocker a bank?
No. PayLocker is a construction payment governance platform. It does not take deposits, provide credit, or hold funds as a banking product. It governs how project money is attributed, approved and released, and what record that process leaves behind.
Who can authorise a payment to be released?
Release follows the approval process defined for the project. A claim must be submitted against work performed or materials supplied, the corresponding obligation must be approved by the authorised participant, and sufficient funds must be available. Each approval is attributable to a named, authenticated user and recorded.
What happens if approved obligations exceed the funds available?
Payments are processed in the approved sequence. Where the available balance is insufficient to meet an obligation in full, a partial payment may be recorded and the outstanding balance remains visible so it can be met from subsequent inflows. The position does not become invisible simply because it is unresolved.
Can a homeowner see the builder's margin?
No. Visibility is permissioned by role. Homeowners and principals see stage amounts, progress, approval status and payment release status for their own project. Commercial information such as builder margin and trade pricing is not exposed to them.
What can a contractor or supplier see?
Their own information: quotes, appointments, claims, approval status, payment status and their position in the approved payment sequence. They do not see other trades' pricing, the builder's margin or the principal's funding arrangements.
Does PayLocker replace statutory trust accounts or security-of-payment legislation?
No. Statutory trust obligations and security-of-payment rights operate independently of PayLocker and are unaffected by using the platform. PayLocker is designed to complement these frameworks by improving the visibility and evidence of payment activity within them.
How does PayLocker verify who is entitled to be paid?
Participants are onboarded through KYC and KYB processes appropriate to their role. Depending on the participant this may include legal and trading name, ABN or ACN, GST registration status, licence or registration details, nominated bank account and project role — reducing ambiguity about who is entitled to receive a payment.
What records are kept, and for how long?
The platform records the payment history of a project: participants verified, obligations created, claims submitted, approvals given, releases executed and balances outstanding. Retention arrangements are described in PayLocker's disclosure and privacy documentation. If a specific retention or export requirement matters to your organisation, ask us and we will confirm it in writing.
Does PayLocker guarantee that a project will be completed or that a participant will be paid?
No. PayLocker does not guarantee project outcomes, commercial performance or payment, and does not insure or indemnify any party. It is designed to improve payment discipline, visibility and evidence — which supports better decisions, earlier, but does not remove commercial risk from construction.
How does PayLocker handle privacy and personal information?
Personal information is handled in accordance with Australian privacy obligations and PayLocker's privacy policy. Project information is shared only on the permissioned basis described above — by role, and by project.
Where does PayLocker operate?
PayLocker is an Australian platform, built for Australian construction payment practices — including staged residential progress payments and the state and territory security-of-payment landscape.
Trust should be checkable, not asserted.
If your organisation needs to assess how project funds are held, how payments are released and what evidence is produced, we would rather show you the structure than describe it. Bring your questions — including the difficult ones.