News Australia will launch four new content platforms and a major event, all focused on personal finance and Australian’s money in a major pitch to become the go-to for trusted information.
The news was shared at the final instalment of its five-part Beyond’27 upfront series in Sydney and the plans come at a crucial time for Australians facing rising cost of living, potentially the most dramatic downturn in property prices in the last 50 years and increasing interest rates in response to, among other things, continued geopolitical tensions.
“I’ll be honest and upfront about where this lands. Beyond 2027, this isn’t a product story — it’s a trust story and confidence, accountability and human guidance will decide who wins,” said Leigh Lavery, general manager of The Growth Distillery.
In 2025, Lavery said, Australians reported losing nearly $2.2 billion to scams, up 8 per cent on the year prior and a cybercrime is reported every six minutes.
“So when your customers are sceptical or anxious, understand this: it isn’t paranoia, it’s now rational. And the categories that underpin everyday life increasingly feel like they’re happening to people, not helping them.”
The Growth Distillery’s research has found that three fifths of Australians feel that essential services and finance are running at them, not the other way around. In June, Australians’ confidence in their family finances fell 7.5 per cent in a single month.
But in this challenging environment, Lavery provided a sense of hope for brands and financial journalists alike. While 82 per cent of Australians use a mobile banking app, two-thirds prefer human support. And while many are turning to AI for financial support, just 4 per cent of Aussies trust AI companies.
Lavery quoted data from a UK firm which found that when it asked AI chatbots 100 questions about personal finance, 56 were right, 27 were misleading and 17 were flat wrong. The Australian Taxation Officer issued a warning earlier this year about the tax mistakes and the private information being given to AI chatbots by consumers.
It’s in this space that News believes it can make a difference for Australia’s consumers and its financial brands.
“Speed on its own doesn’t reassure anyone. A byline, a named expert, a sense that someone actually stands behind the answer — that’s what will decide who people actually trust. And visible expertise is now the shortcut to trust,” Lavery added.
“Across our network, expert-led, bylined formats saw an 87 per cent lift in engagement over those without it, increasing 5 points since 2023. A checkable name is now doing the work a brand promise used to.”
New Formats
To that end, News has launched five new content formats to serve up helpful advice to consumers and provide relevant opportunities for brands.
Invested is a new vodcast platform focused on women’s financial confidence, covering property, superannuation and wealth creation. It gives brands an authentic platform to establish trust during major financial decisions, said News. According to News’ recently appointed finance industry director Taylor Oberman, “it’s unlike anything you’ve seen [News] do before”.
Also new is Stress Tested, a video series hosted by news.com.au finance editor Benjamin Graham and senior reporter Harrison Christian, it will be YouTube-first. The series will uncover real stories of business success and failure, building brand credibility through transparent conversations.
“[It] pairs high-income Australians with founders and industry leaders, unpacking successes, pressures and the risks that come with running a business. Think of it as ‘How-I-got-here’ content that reaches audiences both on and off-network,” said Oberman. “My favourite thing about Stress Tested is that it builds a kind of authentic connection that’s often missing from this category.”
Then there’s Wealth of the Nation, an always-on editorial initiative powered by News.com.au exploring how Australians are navigating property, super and personal finance. News said it will give brands a credible role in the national conversation around wealth while providing valuable audience insights.
Next is Switch On, a digital-first editorial series targeting finance, across insurance, energy, super and tax decisions. It connects brands directly with high-intent audiences at the exact point of comparison and provider selection.
“The idea with Switch On is to bring to life the guidance and navigation at really key moments throughout the year that matter month to your customers. Both [Wealth of the Nation and Switch On] these solutions work towards the same goal, just at two very different moments in the funnel,” said Oberman.
“They help turn something complicated into something that your customers can act on, with you by their side.”
Australia’s Economic Outlook, presented by The Australian and News24 (the artist formerly known as Sky News), is also returning for 2027.
A Trusted Source
For Matt Turl, CEO of Spark Foundry, the announcements made complete sense for News and its positioning in the market. While he didn’t think they were ground-breaking, that isn’t necessarily a bad thing.
“They make sense in the context of what is driving consumer choices. Trust sits at the heart of it. Platforms — and I don’t know them intimately yet — which offer the possibility for consumers to understand the complex in a relatively simplistic fashion, because most of us are not capable of getting under the skin of a contract with an energy supplier or your telco,” he told B&T after the show.
“Having a place which is not a social media feed, where you might get a set of disparate opinions, you’ve got a trusted source. The proposition stands up. Do I know yet whether it’s going to work for any one of our clients? No, I don’t. But the narrative is well told.
“I don’t think today is about News showing up as something completely different. It’s a continuation of the narrative that they have been working for the last couple of years around trust and the value that still exists in their mastheads. But the fact that they have and continue to bring new products to market, because as we all know that the mastheads are not what they used to be in terms of scale and audience accessibility [is pleasing].”
Tara Lamonde, group business director of Pearman Media, echoed Turl’s thoughts.
“It was very top line coverage, but I’d like to know more. There’s so much discussion at the moment about the great wealth transfer and the women coming through, it’s interesting that they’ve developed something around that,” she told B&T.
“I’ve got one client that I work with in financial services, so I’m definitely keen to know more. The thing for me is that there’s so much negativity around budgets, money and finances so it’s really important to have optimism so that’s it’s not all doom and gloom.
“Trust has become the important thing. Brands need to be trusted and they need to lean into people and publishers that have got that reputation. That’s what our clients are struggling with the most, how they can earn trust. In this AI world, the human touch is really important. Which is good for us — as humans!”
Read about the rest of News Australia’s Beyond’27 upfronts:
- ‘You’d Be Crazy Not To’: News Australia Bets Big On Corporate Advocacy To Deliver Brand Impact & Improve Australians’ Lives
- Much Sport, A Sprinkling Of Entertainment: News Australia’s ‘Major Event Framework’ & Mix Of Old, New Media Kicks Goals
- Virgin Australia Launches Travel Media Network, News’ Suddenly To Manage Sales – But Will Advertisers Get On Board?
- ‘You Don’t Have To Be The Tough Guy’: News Australia Launches ‘Better Men’ Initiative As It Goes All In On Mental Health
