New future for open banking as government and regulators confirm Open Banking Limited will continue to lead the expansion of open banking

This morning, the Joint Regulatory Oversight Committee (JROC), which is made up of HM Treasury, Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Payment Systems Regulator (PSR), published their vision for the future of open banking and their recommendations on the design of a future entity that Open Banking Limited will transition to, and new policy Roadmap. Open Banking Limited (OBL, also formerly known as the Open Banking Implementation Entity) was created following the CMA’s 2016 retail banking investigation. Its initial role was to create a shared API for the nine biggest current account providers in the UK, so their customers can safely and securely share their data with other financial service providers to achieve better financial outcomes across a number of banking products including current accounts and credit cards. OBL is also tasked with monitoring the performance of the nine banks. Following the completion of the CMA’s ‘roadmap’ in January 2023, Today’s decision follows months of work by government, regulators and the financial services industry to begin developing work on the next stages of open banking. It confirmed:

• The FCA and PSR will lead on developing a future entity that OBL will transition to.
• New JROC roadmap to continue the development of open banking standards.
• Development of a new long-term regulatory framework that will build on the Payment Services Regulations and replace the current CMA Open Banking Order.

Furthermore, the Economic Secretary to the Treasury confirmed that the first Centre for Finance, Innovation and Technology (CFIT) coalition will be in the area of Open Finance. Marion King, OBL Chair and Trustee, said: “Today’s announcement by the Joint Regulatory Oversight Committee (JROC) secures the future for our thriving open banking ecosystem in the UK. In just over five years, the UK’s approach to open banking has created a world-leading regulatory framework delivering competition, innovation and, most importantly, real-world benefits to seven million consumers and small businesses. “JROC’s recommendations and other government initiatives will allow us to maintain momentum, and for the UK to extend the benefits of open banking into other financial services and sectors through open finance and smart data, benefiting millions more users. “Five years ago, the regulators, the banking industry, fintechs and other consumer and business groups collaborated to create an approach that is replicated by more than 80 international regulators. This has reinforced the UK’s reputation as a global fintech centre. Now is the time to create a future entity and new regulatory framework that can build on open banking’s successes to deliver JROC’s priorities. “We would like to thank the Economic Secretary to the Treasury, Andrew Griffith MP, and JROC for their leadership, and the Strategic Working Group for their hard work in getting us to this point. We look forward to collaborating with our partners to deliver JROC’s vision in the coming months.”