Introduction - the year ahead
Marion King,
OBL Chair and Trustee
OBL achieved a great deal last year. We saw continued growth in both payments volume and adoption, as well as working closely with JROC to progress its work, and to ensure the smooth transition to a future entity. This will, of course, protect the CMA Order and continue to ensure that open banking delivers a public good.
As the Data Protection and Digital Information (DPDI) Bill makes its way through Parliament, we also look forward to progressing our work with the Smart Data Council on wider regulatory initiatives that will bring the benefits of open banking to other economic sectors such as energy, transport, telecoms, home-buying, and retail.
This will take open banking beyond a competition remedy, and we can look to harness commercial incentives as we move with pace towards open finance – the natural next step to deliver further products and services that benefit UK consumers and businesses, support financial inclusion and pave the way for a true smart data economy.
Ensuring the UK retains its world-leading position in open banking
Last October I took part in a panel at Open Banking Expo to answer the question, ‘Is the UK losing its crown as a world leader in open banking?’ At the start of 2024, I am confident in giving the same answer: a resounding ‘no’.
Last year saw us taking a ‘regulatory pause’ to learn from other jurisdictions before open banking in the UK accelerates again. We can now count more than 8 million active users of open banking in the UK, and in November 2023 we saw a record 12.85m open banking-enabled payments made - this is a year-on-year growth of 78.5% (from 7.2m payments in November 2022). As big tech begins to come on board with open banking, I predict that we will see payments double in the space of just two years.
The Government and regulators have delivered great progress so far, and the industry must continue to collaborate to assure the future of open banking as it moves to open finance and smart data.
Our annual predictions, from a range of parliamentarians, ecosystem players, and industry experts, give me great optimism that this will happen, helping the UK retain its status as a world leader in financial innovation.
Henk Van Hulle,
OBL CEO
