The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission granted Australian Payments Network and Australian Payments Plus interim authorization for discussions on the future of account-to-account payments in the country, the regulator said in a Thursday statement.

Australian Payments Network members include ANZ Group Holdings (ASX:ANZ, NZE:ANZ), Westpac Banking (ASX:WBC, NZE:WBC), Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX:CBA), National Australia Bank (ASX:NAB), Bendigo and Adelaide Bank (ASX:BEN), Bank of Queensland (ASX:BOQ), Judo Capital Holdings (ASX:JDO), Macquarie Group (ASX:MQG), MyState (ASX:MYS).

The approval allows information gathering and planning with industry bodies and regulators, but does not permit formal meetings or agreements on a common position.

Shares of MyState, National Australia Bank, Westpac, Macquarie Group, and ANZ Group Holdings climbed more than 1% on Thursday, while Bendigo and Adelaide Bank and Commonwealth Bank of Australia posted gains of nearly 1%. In contrast, shares of Judo Capital dropped 5%.