Ex-NAB Chief Drew Bradford: 70% of Banking Costs Will Disappear by 2029

Why are top banking executives walking away from 35-year TradFi careers to build blockchain rails?

This week, Pav sits down with Drew Bradford, CEO of Macropod and former head of trading and derivatives at NAB and Deutsche Bank. Drew exposes the harsh inefficiencies of traditional banking architecture, revealing why post-trade settlement accounts for a staggering 70% of operations costs at major financial institutions.

Drew and Pav explore Macropod’s milestones under the Reserve Bank of Australia’s (RBA) Project Acacia, including Australia's first on-chain corporate bond tokenisation. They break down how AUDM and programmable stablecoins can eliminate Australia's $9 billion annual merchant tap fee burden, automate cross-border trade escrow for small businesses, and allow AI agents to manage idle cash for instant, real-time yield.

You’ll hear:

00:00 Pav shares the studio with Drew, CEO of Macropod and former head of trading and derivatives at NAB and Deutsche Bank

01:24 Drew reveals that 70% of bank operational costs stem from post-trade settlement and why smart contracts solve it instantly.

04:05 How AUD stablecoins reduce merchant processing fees from 1.5% down to fractions of a cent.

06:15 Real-world escrow for bathroom renovators, dairy exporters in Asia, and instant yield via AI agents.

12:10 Why tokenised bank deposits will exist alongside open digital cash like AUDM.

14:22 Where Australia sits on the global stage and why 2029 will be the tipping point where legacy rails become obsolete.

… and much more!

Connect with Drew on LinkedIn and learn more about Macropod here.

Want to see what we’re looking at every episode? Watch the YouTube version of the podcast here.

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