"The DPDI Bill does many welcome and necessary things to equip the UK for an increasingly data-driven world, but the block of smart data clauses are the ones that matter most for our economy. They build on the foundations of our world-leading position in open banking, so we can extend the same approach quickly into other industries too.

The changes should make it easier, cheaper and safer for businesses and consumers to switch to a different energy, telecoms or online grocery firm. And they should give people who lead, work or invest in British tech firms an enormous new opportunity to grow their businesses, creating wealth and driving exports by disrupting long-established incumbents as smart data transforms the way global industries work.

But we can’t sit on our laurels. The rest of the world is watching, and wants to leapfrog our lead in open banking to beat us to this enormously valuable economic prize. So we can’t afford to stand still.

We need two things alongside this Bill: interoperable standards so we can leverage our existing technology lead across into all the new industries, and a timeline so companies know which sectors will be opened up and when, and can get their products ready to roll in time. Ministers need to publish these things in weeks, so everyone can get moving.”

“2024 will bring a heightened sense of a need for financial security. As we continue with a cost-of-living crisis, financial assurance, and the framework in which to see that in operation will be a key factor across our economic system.

Open Banking Limited (OBL) will play a key part in achieving this, from supporting first-time buyers to helping businesses succeed.

With OBL and the wider ecosystem experiencing a tidal wave of change and subsequent interest, it can be said with absolute certainty that the system will continue to grow and flourish. With the DPDI Bill set to play a large part in this, its passage is likely to take place in January, alongside the better provisions made on smart data.

What is clear, is that we need to go faster and further in championing smart data and open banking, which can be achieved through the emergence of schemes that allows consumers to make better decisions, and enables innovation.

One of the most effective areas of smart data is open finance; through the expansion of provisions into new areas, it will have a greater social impact, and be a true public good.

There is the opportunity for cost-saving efficiencies to be made across the board, allowing consumers and businesses to make cost savings through reducing late payments, managing their real-time cashflow, accessing cost-effective finance, and streamlining business administration.”