Media article published by the PIE News on June 13th.

Purpose built student accommodation provider UniLodge Australia has partnered with edtech company Cohort Go to deliver custom-built payments software which aims to improve the payments experience of students and reduce finance staff workload.

Through the partnership, Cohort Go will deliver a new payment platform for the accommodation provider using machine learning to centralise management of the individual bank accounts of UniLodge’s 70 properties.

“This automation eliminates most of the manual work for UniLodge”

“Our partnership with Cohort Go has offered our finance team the opportunity to move away from manually reconciling, towards a fully dedicated payments portal,” said UniLodge finance project manager Scott Nicholas.

“The reconciliation of student payments can now be automated, reducing administration time and enabling our staff to engage in resident-focused activities.”

The culmination of several years of discussions between the two companies, the partnership is the latest for Cohort Go during a period of substantial expansion. Late 2018 saw the company broaden its reach into both Latin America and the US.

Chief executive and co-founder of Cohort Go, Mark Fletcher, told The PIE Newsthe platform would benefit both finance staff and students by providing streamlined and transparent payment options.

“We fully streamline the receipting of the payment all the way through to UniLodge’s property management system,” he said.

“This automation eliminates most of the manual work for UniLodge, drastically reducing administration time for their finance team.”

The service, which allows for payments through currency transfer, BPAY, direct debit and credit card, would also remove hidden foreign exchange rate costs, he added.

“International students… can also expect to see savings on their accommodation costs due to better foreign exchange rates,” Fletcher said.

“Studying overseas can be expensive and complex, so we’re delighted that this partnership will help provide more transparency and make the financial side easier.”

In early 2018, Cohort Go penned a deal with IDP Education to make its payment services available to all clients.