The simple synthesis of a family of palladates containing an imidazolium counterion is presented. These "ate" complexes can be easily converted into well-defined palladium-N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) complexes. The synthetic protocols leading to the "ate" and to the Pd-NHC neutral complexes have been exemplified with various NHC ligands. The palladates prove efficient pre-catalysts enabling Suzuki-Miyaura and Mizoroki-Heck reactions.