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Open Banking

Anything that puts customer choice first will always be welcomed by us, and we believe it will make banking better for everyone. But what is it? Here's the lowdown...

So what's Open Banking?

Open Banking has been designed to offer you greater control of how you manage your money by making it possible to share information with third party providers (TPPs). TPPs can provide a range of services such as viewing all your accounts in one place, budgeting and comparison tools and much more. 

There are 3 core themes to Open Banking:

  1. Account Information Sharing allows you to benefit from services provided by TPPs, such as price comparison sites, to check if there might be a better account for you, or to see all your different account balances and transactions in one place.
  2. Making Payments allows you to send money directly from your account using a TPP. This can be an immediate, future-dated or sweeping payment.
  3. Card Based Payment Instrument Issuer (CBPII) allows a TPP to issue you with a card which you link to the payment account of your choice.  You can make payments with that card and the TPP will ask us for confirmation that you have money in your account to cover the payment. We’ll only respond with a yes or no answer. 

If the TPP wants to access the money in your accounts, they’ll need to make separate arrangements with you for this.

Subject to your consent, there are two ways TPPs may choose to access your account:

  • Open Banking Access – You'll be securely redirected to our online authentication process, similar to the way you log on to our Online Banking service. If you’re using our Mobile Banking App you'll able to use biometrics (face or touch) to authenticate, where available. When the process is complete we’ll either send the requested information to the TPP or make the payment.
  • Via Online Banking – They’ll log on using your online security details, which they’ll ask you for each time.  They’ll then have access to all the information and services you see online in relation to your accounts.  This includes your account balances, transactions and payee information. They must only access information and make payments that you have consented to.

All TPPs that access your information must comply with data protection laws and must be registered or authorised with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)

How will this benefit me?

Some examples of how Open Banking services may benefit you include: 

  • If you have accounts at different banks, there are many TPPs which allow you to connect those accounts so you can view all your balances and transactions in a single place. 
  • Product comparison sites could show you accounts that are better suited based on your actual usage. 

It’s worth checking with the TPPs to see how you could benefit from their services.

Need more information?

Visit the Open Banking website for more information.

If you're a first direct customer with questions about Open Banking and how it will affect you, call us on 03 456 100 100 and we'll be happy to help.

If you're not a first direct customer and you'd like to be - find out more about switching to first direct here.

Frequently asked questions