Those reforms: •  established a separate Payments System Board of the Reserve Bank with a majority of independent directors,  •  gave the Board the power to designate payment systems, and to set regulatory standards for designated systems in relation to such matters as access and pricing,  •  set the policy objectives of the Board as efficiency, competition and stability.
The Wallis Report recommended an initial focus on credit cards, and accordingly this was the first area of regulatory action taken by the new Board. The four-party credit card schemes were designated in 2001 and, after a period of consultation, a package of reforms was implemented from 2003 onwards. The key elements of that package are well known and are still in place.