The Future of Banking Is Open PDF

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The report discusses the future of banking with the introduction of Open Banking regulation in the UK. Open Banking aims to make banking more transparent and open through data sharing using APIs. This could potentially disrupt the banking industry but also create new opportunities.

Open Banking refers to new banking regulations that require banks to share customer data with third parties if authorized by the customer. It was introduced in the UK to increase transparency, competition and innovation in banking. The regulation has evolved from its original intent and there is also a wider shift towards more data sharing.

Open Banking propositions will be deployed in phases, with increasingly innovative use cases emerging over time. It can be used to create value in different ways for various players. The banking landscape may change significantly with new scenarios and different groups benefiting. There are also potential unintended consequences that regulators need to address.

The future of

banking is open
How to seize the
Open Banking
opportunity
Contents
Foreword 1
What is Open Banking and why does it matter? 4
The UK banking market is due for transformation 4
Open Banking regulation has evolved from the original intent 5
There is a wider societal shift towards transparency and API-based data sharing 9

How will the banking landscape change? 11


Propositions will be deployed in waves, with increasingly innovative use cases appearing 11
Open Banking can be used to create value in a number of different ways 15
Market players are responding in different ways to the opportunities and threats 16
A number of different scenarios may emerge with different groups benefiting 24
Open Banking could drive benefits for the industry but may have unintended consequences 25
Regulators need to ensure sufficient speed of progress while protecting customers 25

What will it mean for customers and what is the size of


the opportunity? 26
Current awareness is low but is significantly higher for SMEs than retail customers 26
Low awareness of Open Banking and PSD2 is not surprising 28
Satisfaction with incumbents and data security concerns create headwinds for new players 30
Similar challenges have been overcome before in adjacent industries 36
Uptake will vary across SMEs and retail customers over the next five years 37
Retail customer uptake is expected to scale up significantly over the next five years 38
Open Banking has the potential to create a revenue opportunity of at least £7.2bn by 2022 43

How should firms respond? 44


Firms should focus on a few differentiating capabilities 44
Companies could adopt a number of partnership models 45
Regardless of their positioning, successful firms will have some common characteristics 47
Firms need to address a number of important areas to be confident of success 48
Foreword

It is more than half a However, atop the glass towers of In our report we cover why Open
the country’s largest banks and Banking matters and how the banking
year since the UK’s Open within the Shoreditch offices of landscape may change going forward.
Banking experiment FinTechs, executives are discussing We also size the market for potential
Open Banking as a hugely important revenue opportunies, and outline how
began, and yet, on the strategic issue due to its power firms could respond to capitalise on the
surface, very little has potentially to both disrupt and create opportunity and address the disruptive
new opportunity. threat head on.
changed in the retail
banking landscape. In fact, By conducting interviews with
executives and Open Banking leads at
if you were to bring up the the country’s most influential financial
topic at a dinner party, services organisations and FinTechs,
combined with a survey of over 1,000
you would mostly likely retail and SME customers, we have
be met with blank stares distilled the key insights in the Open
Banking space. Jonathan Turner
or apathy.
Open Banking Leader
PwC

The future of banking is open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity 1
A message from the
Open Data Institute

At the Open Data Institute, we work As such, Open Banking has the
with companies and governments potential to radically transform
to build an open, trustworthy data the way in which we engage in
ecosystem, where people can get banking services, receive money
value from data and its impacts do no and make payments. It is likely
harm. We are proud therefore to have to cause significant disruption to
partnered with PwC Strategy& on how consumers (personal and
this report which takes insights from particularly small businesses) think
current market players and outlines about banking, who should provide
key actions to seize the opportunity banking services, who will inform
and benefit Open Banking brings for and guide us, how, when and why
businesses and consumers. will we allow organisations that
are not our banks to have access
We are more aware than ever before
to our financial data. Could this
of the importance and value of
even change the composition of the
data about us, and how it is shared
traditional banking institutional
and used. This not only applies to
landscape? Some think this could
financial services, but across a wide
be the catalyst behind a revolution
range of sectors from utilities to
in how we perceive personal and
retail to transport. Whilst the value
SME banking.
of this data is not disputed, questions
around who has access to it and for Finally, Open Banking has trust and
what purpose have become ever more consent at its heart the exchange
relevant, both for us as consumers of data will be for services that
but also for those organisations that add value and it is that which will
have access to data. drive the adoption of new products
and services.
Open Banking touches on all of
these important themes. A thriving We hope you find this report
community of innovators is ready to insightful and useful and please do
translate our transactional statement get in touch.
data into valuable tools to help us
manage our finances better, to find
new and better services more easily,
and to connect our banking data to
other services in housing, travel,
health and utilities.

David Beardmore
Commercial Director
Open Data Institute

2 The future of banking is open


Executive summary

Our clients are treating Consistent with wider social shifts Over time more innovative propositions
towards transparency, data standards should completely change how financial
Open Banking regulation and sharing, Open Banking is an services are delivered and integrated
as a critically important enabler for increased competition, into everyday experiences. Our
innovation and customer centricity. analysis also suggests that companies
strategic topic that cannot should target affluent, young, urban
be ignored due to the size The UK is at the forefront of Open populations as an initial customer
Banking innovation globally, with the market although this will grow and
of the opportunity and Competition and Markets Authority widen as propositions mature.
the potentially disruptive (CMA) mandating that from January
2018, the nine largest current account Companies need to ensure that they
impact it could have on providers must offer standardised have a compelling vision of how they
the financial services application programming interfaces will stand out in a highly competitive
(APIs) for current accounts to Account and transparent environment. It is
landscape. Information Service Providers (AISPs) not feasible to chase all the potential
and payments for Payment Initiation Open Banking opportunities, so firms
Service Providers (PISPs). will need to focus on developing
differentiated propositions and
By providing access to this data to capabilities. They will need to make
third parties, Open Banking levels choices about addressing capability
the playing field between traditional gaps through acquisition, partnering
incumbent financial services providers or operating as part of an ecosystem
and new disruptors. Incumbents are at of providers.
risk of falling behind more technology
enabled peers as well as new market Regardless of positioning, there
entrants, such as FinTechs. They are are some common characteristics
challenged by the potential entry into we believe are required to succeed
financial services by prominent players in an Open Banking environment
in other industries, in particular which include: a customer centric
technology giants who may now operating model, strong data analytics
be encouraged to innovate in areas capabilities, integrated and secure
like payments. technology platforms as well as an agile
and open working culture.
While many customers’ concerns
about security and privacy currently Although the future is uncertain,
outweigh the perceived benefits, there companies cannot afford to wait and
is already a large target market for see how it unfolds. A strategic approach
Open Banking solutions. We estimate to Open Banking is critical if companies
that Open Banking has the potential to want to be confident of success.
create a revenue opportunity of at least
£7.2bn by 2022 across retail and SME
markets. Examples of the numerous use
cases enabled by open API data include
account aggregation, better financial
management, credit scoring thin-file
customers, and integrated lending and
accounting platforms for SMEs.

The future of banking is open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity 3
What is Open Banking
and why does it matter?

Whatever the motivation The UK banking market is The industry faces a number of
challenges. These include the fact
and the mechanism for its due for transformation that banking still suffers from a poor
introduction and despite reputation and relatively low levels
The UK has long been recognised as a
the potential pitfalls, global leader in banking. The industry
of trust2 when compared to other
industries. Many of the incumbents are
the application of Open plays a critical role domestically,
still struggling to modernise their IT
Banking principles could enabling the day-to-day flow of money
platforms and to embrace digital in a
and management of risk that are
significantly change the essential for individuals and businesses.
way that fundamentally changes the cost
base and the way customers are served.
shape of banking for It is also the most internationally
There are also growing service gaps in
the better. competitive industry in the UK,
the industry, with 16m people trapped in
providing the greatest trade surplus of
the finance advice gap3.
any exporting industry. As outlined in
our thought leadership piece for The City In the face of these challenges, Open
UK, ‘A Vision for a Transformed World- Banking provides an opportunity to
Leading Industry’ 1, the UK has a mature open up the banking industry, ignite
and sophisticated banking market innovation to tackle some of these
with leading Banks, FinTechs and issues and radically enhance the public’s
Regulators. However, with fundamental interaction and experience with the
technological, demographic, societal and financial services industry. As we
political changes underway, the industry highlighted in our recent report ‘Who
needs to transform itself in order to are you calling a challenger?’ 4, a wave of
effectively serve society and remain new challenger banks have entered the
globally relevant. market with these opportunities at the
heart of their propositions. However,
increased competition is no longer the
only objective of Open Banking.

Open Banking provides an opportunity to open up the


banking industry, ignite innovation and enhance the
public’s experience with the financial services industry.

Source: 1www.pwc.co.uk/FutureofFRPS
22018 Edelman Trust Barometer
32015 Financial Advice Review
4 The future of banking is open 4www.pwc.co.uk/Challenger-Banks
Open Banking regulation has evolved from the original intent
The UK started introducing an Open While the UK was developing Open The common theme within these
Banking Standard in 2016 to make Banking, the European Parliament initiatives is the recognition that
the banking sector work harder adopted the revised payment individual customers have the right
for the benefit of consumers. The services directive (PSD2) to make to provide third parties with access
implementation of the standard was it easier, faster, and less expensive to their financial data. This is usually
guided by recommendations from the for customers to pay for goods and done in the name of increased
Open Banking Working Group, made services, by promoting innovation competition, accelerating technology
up of banks and industry groups and (especially by third-party providers). development of new products and
co-chaired by the Open Data Institute PSD2 acknowledges the rise of services, reducing fraud and bringing
and Barclays. It had a focus on how payment-related FinTechs and aims more people into a financially
data could be used to “help people to create a level playing field for all inclusive environment.
to transact, save, borrow, lend and payment service providers while
invest their money”. The standard’s ensuring enhanced security and strong
framework sets out how to develop customer protection. PSD2 requires
a set of standards, tools, techniques all payment account providers across
and processes that will stimulate the EU to provide third-party access.
competition and innovation in the While this does not require an open
country’s financial sector. standard, PSD2 does provide the legal
framework within which the Open
Banking standard in the UK and future
efforts at creating other national Open
Banking standards in Europe will have
to operate.

The future of banking is open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity 5
Figure 1: Open Banking timeline (2013-2020)

Revised PSD2 proposal Fingleton Report


(EU, July 2013) (UK, September 2014)
• Proposal for a revised PSD2 published • Report published by The Open
2013 by the European Commission Data Institute and Fingleton
• Recommended that Payment Account Associates
Providers to allow third parties with • Recommended that banks create
appropriate consent to share account standardised APIs accessible to
information and initiate payments third parties
2015
Open Banking Standards PSD2 text published
(UK, February 2016) (UK, January 2016)
• Initial set of guidelines published by • Publication of the final text in the
HM Treasury Official Journal of the EU
• Outlines how Open Banking data • Member states required to apply
should be created, shared and used majority of provisions within
• Objective to enable the creation of an 2 years
Open Banking data ecosystem

2017
PSD2 deadline CMA 9 deadline
(EU, January 2018) (UK, January 2018)
• Requires all payment service • 9 largest UK current account
providers (PSP) to allow open data providers to open API for current
access to customer account and accounts
payment services to 3rd parties • Only FCA approved businesses will
• Applies to all payments where one PSP be provided access to open APIs
is in the EEA • Customers will have to opt-in to
share data
2019
PSD2 RTS deadline
(EU, September 2019)
• Prohibits access of data beyond
that explicitly authorised by
2020 customers
• Screen scraping techniques will
be banned
• Strong customer authentication
required for electronic payments

Source: Payments UK, PwC Strategy&

6 The future of banking is open


Although the initial objectives of the Open Whilst there is little argument One danger in any international
Banking standards were to increase competition that the UK leads the way in Open shift in thinking, such as Open
in banking and increase current account Banking (figure 3), it is by no Banking, is that technology
switching, the intent is continuingly evolving means doing so alone. Many other overtakes the original intention.
with a broader focus on areas including: reduced countries are looking carefully at The ‘core technology’ here is open
overdraft fees, improved customer service, greater the UK experience to understand APIs and they feature in all the
control of data and increased financial inclusion. how a local implementation might international programmes, even
benefit from some of the issues when an explicit ‘Open Banking’
experienced during the UK’s label is not applied. In a post-
preparation and ‘soft launch’ in PSD2 environment, the primary
Figure 2: Additional expectations of January 2018. There are many responsibility for security risks
Open Banking standards informal networks around the will lie with payment service
world, which link regulators, providers. Vulnerability to data
FinTechs and banks to facilitate security breaches may increase in
the sharing of information from line with the number of partners
one market to another. interacting via the APIs.
Improved
Reduced Countries around the world are The new EU General Data
customer
overdraft fees at various stages of maturity in Protection Regulation (GDPR)
service
implementing Open Banking. requires protecting customer data
£ The UK leads as the only country privacy as well as capturing and
to have legislated and built a evidencing customer consent,
development framework to with potentially steep penalties
support the regulations, enabling for breaches. Payment service
it to be advanced in bringing providers must therefore ensure
Increased
Greater new products and services to that comprehensive security
financial
control of data market as a result. However, a measures are in place to protect
inclusion
number of other countries are the confidentiality and integrity
progressing rapidly towards of customers’ security credentials,
their own development of Open assets and data.
Banking. In a second group sit the
Source: PwC Strategy& EU, Australia and Mexico, which
have taken significant steps in
legislation and implementation.
Canada, Hong Kong, India,
Japan, New Zealand, Singapore,
and the US are all making
progress in preparing their
respective markets for Open
Banking initiatives.

The future of banking is open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity 7
Figure 3: Global Open Banking league table

Country Initiatives
Group • The CMA set a deadline of January 2018 for the UK’s
1 9 largest current account providers to Open APIs for current accounts
UK • Banks will also be impacted by additional PSD2 Regulatory Technical Standards regulation in
September 2019 that bans screen scraping
Group • Western European countries (e.g. Italy) are adopting the Berlin Group standard (Germany’s API
2 standards for compliance with PSD2)
EU • In Germany, current account APIs are already being used for processes such as onboarding and
credit scoring (e.g. Fidor)
• Nordic banks, due to operations across the region, are waiting for a regional API standard
• The recommendations published in December 2017 for the Australian Treasury gives customers a
right to direct that the information they already share with their bank be safely shared with
Australia others they trust
• Open Banking is part of the ‘Consumer Data Right’ in Australia, a more general right being
created for consumers to control their data, including who can have it and who can use it, with
Banking the first sector to which this right is to be applied
• Mexico’s law regulating Financial Technology Institutions (‘The FinTech Law’) became effective
in March 2018, permitting Open Banking and also giving FinTechs greater regulatory certainty
Mexico around crowdfunding, payment methods and cryptocurrencies
• The Mexican authorities have looked carefully at the UK experience and applied a number of
features of the UK framework, including the customer consent model and a regulatory sandbox
Group • The payments association, NACHA (National Automated Clearinghouse Association), has
3 spearheaded efforts with their API standardisation programme announced in 2017 built around
USA ‘16 API Use Cases That Will Transform the Financial Services Industry’, grouped around: fraud &
risk reduction, data sharing and payment access
• It is unclear yet whether the US will introduce an open API standard which would allow
customers to choose services to which they want to give access to their banking
• In May 2017, the Amended Banking Act decided to introduce a registration system for ‘Third
Party Providers (TPPs)’ and to announce policies for collaboration between banks and TPPs with
Japan the Japanese government expecting more than 100 banks to open APIs in the next few years
• Individual banks are launching their own efforts to enable secure access to its data from its online
banking systems from third-party applications – e.g. the Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG)
is reportedly examining such opportunities
• The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) is focused on a commercially driven rather than a
regulatory driven approach to Open Banking, working with many banks opening up APIs as part
Singapore of their ongoing developments
• For example, Singapore’s largest bank, DBS Group Holdings, recently launched a platform
enabling third-party developers to access more than 150 APIs to integrate functionality into their
own services, like real-time payments
• The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) published its draft Open API framework in January
2018 marking the start of a public consultation outlining its intentions to move towards a ‘New
Hong Era of Smart Banking’
Kong
• New Zealand is developing their Open Banking framework predominately through the
voluntary cooperation of its major financial services players, led by a forward-looking payments
New association
Zealand
• There is no centrally directed policy but a number of API-driven initiatives have been introduced
(e.g. Unified Payment Interface – an account to account payments system) to increase
India competition and act as a catalyst for Open Banking
• The Canadian government launched an Open Banking review in February 2018 to explore the
benefits and risks associated providing third parties access to customer data
Canada

8 The future of banking is open Source: Open Data Institute


There is a wider societal shift towards transparency and API-based data sharing
The regulatory initiatives mentioned Technology enabled businesses, such But more traditional organisations
above share common underlying as Amazon, are frequently used as the are making significant use of data
infrastructure of open APIs, a proven exemplars of the new economy. They too. Public transport services are
technology that can help provide access have reached massive global scale a forerunner in this field with
to open data (such as a list of products through new business models enabled organisations around the world
that a bank provides) and secure shared by software and data. Amazon has an publishing data and seeing better
access to private data (such as a list internal mandate that all data must be services for travellers as a result.
of the transactions in an individual’s made available through an API to other Transport for London estimate
bank statements), and surrounding parts of their organisation5. The move that they are generating annual
policy, legal and governance structures encouraged partnership across the economic benefits and savings of up
to create trust, develop standards, company, as teams had to understand to £130m a year through their own
monitor progress and guide the each other’s needs in order to build data programme6.
initiative towards the desired outcome. useful APIs. Opening these APIs up to
external developers led to a greater Moreover, the international Open Data
Open Banking is part of a wider trend understanding of the needs of both Charter has been adopted by
of giving citizens and customers more the market and end-users, enabling 52 governments and is endorsed by
control over data, and revitalising the company to make better strategic 42 non-state organisations such
existing sectors through the use decisions about new products. as the Web Foundation, the Open
of modern technologies, processes Data Institute and IBM. All of these
and business models. This trend is organisations are publishing data
emerging as countries around the as openly as possible and creating
world continue to debate and discover conditions for that data to be used
what the current age of data abundance by citizens, customers and creators
means for society. It can be seen in to make better decisions and build
other sectors such as public services, new services.
transport, and retail.

Source: 5 Amazon
6 Transport for London

The future of banking is open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity 9
Figure 4: Non-financial services API case studies

Transport for London Uber – driver APIs Travel industry

API British Airways


Transport for London Uber
provider Hilton Hotels

API user CityMapper Sears Auto Centre SkyScanner


examples Google Maps Activehours Booking.com

• All public data is released • App developers use API to • Aggregators use APIs from
free of charge for develop income airlines, hotels, etc. to
developers to use management and tax tools compare offerings
Use case • Mobile apps use the feed to • Driving activity data used • Combining APIs can facilitate
develop integrated transport to develop reward apps the sale of package deals
and navigation tools

• TfL save cost developing • Driver experience improved • Travel companies receive
customer apps in-house without Uber incurring higher customer traffic
• Customer benefit from additional cost through aggregator platforms
Benefits innovative applications • Drivers access benefits that • Increased price competition
are not normally received in the market
by contractors

Source: PwC Strategy&

10 The future of banking is open


How will the banking
landscape change?

Propositions will be deployed in waves, with


increasingly innovative use cases appearing
While the new regulation and continue to expand. After analysis
technologies create an environment of propositions in the market as well
in which innovation can flourish, the as discussions with banks, FinTechs
creative nature of solution development and industry regulatory groups, we
means it is impossible to predict the have identified five broad categories
full range of propositions which might of propositions: aggregation platforms,
appear. Nevertheless, there is already a process improvement, advice and
long list of propositions which may be analytics tools, enhanced banking
developed and enhanced across both product offerings and enhanced
retail and SME banking should the non-banking product offerings.
appetite and scope of Open Banking

Figure 5: Potential Open Banking proposition categories


Proposition Description Example use case
Aggregation Aggregation platforms provide a Managing bank account, credit
platforms single view of customer cards, loans and savings products
financials across multiple from different providers in a
providers, as well as single application
recommendations on product
choices
Process Integration and automation of Using account APIs to automatically
improvement administrative activities verify identity, salary, deposit
origin and income as part of
mortgage approval process
Advice and Insight and recommendations Using data analytics on account
analytics based on open data transaction data to identify
tools spending patterns to help people
budget and manage their savings
Enhanced Tailored products based on Creating customised holiday loan
banking customer data & improved products based on flight and hotel
product functionality from automation bookings and anticipated spend
offerings
Enhanced Compare and purchase of Automatically managing utility
non-banking non-FS products through Open bills through accessing transaction
product Banking platforms in an easy data and comparing to market
offerings integrated way rates to identify discounts

Source: PwC Strategy&

“Responding to Open Banking is a non-negotiable”


(CEO, UK Retail Bank)
The future of banking is open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity 11
Figure 6: Potential Open Banking enabled propositions (non-exhaustive)

Proposition type Example propositions Key focus Description


Aggregation Aggregation platform Single view of customer financials across Relatively easy
platforms multiple providers to develop,
Wealth management Single platform to manage multiple wealth existing players
platforms management accounts
Line of credit Consolidated view of multiple lines of credit
dashboards
Process Credit scoring Higher quantity and quality of credit
improvement rating information
Identity verification Simple verification capability for FS and non-FS
and KYC products and users
International Simple and fast transfer of money internationally
remittance services
Dynamic payroll Automation of the payroll process for businesses

Loyalty programmes Automated management of loyalty and


discount programmes
Advice and Money management Advice to customers in how they can save/spend
analysis tools more effectively
Marketplace Platform allowing product comparisons between
third parties
Enhanced Bespoke lending Analysis of spending data to enable provision of
banking product customised loans
offerings Overdraft decoupling Identification of overdraft data to drive product
recommendations
Micro savings and Tool to enable saving small amounts from
deposits available deposits
Cash flow management Automated management of cash balances and
future cash flows
Enhanced Utilities management Analysis of customer utility bills to drive product
non-banking recommendations
product offerings Integrated accounting, Management of business accounts
audit and tax services (e.g. invoice management)
Tax and estate planning Integration of advice and management tools for More complex
personal finance propositions, low
Property management Advice on and management of property assets penetration

Key: Retail focussed SME focussed Selected opportunities

Source: PwC Strategy&

12 The future of banking is open The future of banking is open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity 12
The future of banking is open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity 13
Figure 7: AISP and PISP providers
Firm #FTE Years active

bud. 75-100 3
Consents Online 15-30 1 Aggregation
21%
Emma 5-10 1 platform
bean 0-5 2
ClearScore 100-150 4
CreDec 75-100 22
TrueLayer 15-30 2 Process
32%
Credit Data Research 15-30 5 improvement

Credit Kudos 5-10 2


Flux 5-10 2
intuit 8,300 26
evestor 30 3
Funding Exchange 30 4
Advice &
fundingoptions 30 7 37%
analysis tools
Bizfitech 30 3
Fractal Labs 15 4
moneybox 15 3
iwoca 150-200 6 Enhanced
11% product
Safety Net Credit 100-150 7 offering

Source: FCA, Crunchbase, UK Companies House, company websites

We analysed all AISP and PISP Figure 8: Enablers of Open Banking proposition development
providers currently registered to the
FCA at May 2018 and categorised them
Availability and
in our framework. standardisation of data
(e.g. Standard APIs)
New propositions are likely to be
developed and deployed in waves, with
progressive levels of creativity and
value to customers. We envisage three
such waves, driven by the availability
of different forms of open data, which
will expand as the technology, security
arrangements and customer acceptance
of data sharing mature. Technology Consumers' interest
and maturity of and demand for Open
At present, with only current account data analytics Banking propositions
data available via API, propositions are (e.g. Machine/AI learning) (i.e. Willingness to pay for services)

predominately focusing on improving


solutions to known Financial Services
Source: PwC Strategy&
issues. Many of these propositions are
already available via screen scraping.
We anticipate that the second wave In the third wave open data structures are likely to become more commonplace
will focus on creating new financial in other industries, and this will accelerate if Open Banking proves successful.
services propositions that address This will provide the opportunity for the development of propositions that not
gaps in products and services – where only improve financial services, but enable and enhance a broader range of life
solutions are not currently available in management services by leveraging AI (e.g. a digital assistant that automatically
the market. manages tasks such as food delivery and tax payments, utilities bills).

14 The future of banking is open


Open Banking can be used to create value in a number of different ways
Questions still remain around how banks and FinTechs will generate value from propositions and no dominant model has
been developed yet. It is clear, however, that Open Banking could provide three distinct value opportunities: revenue, cost
and valuation.

Figure 9: Initial Open Banking value opportunities

Revenue Pay for use: upfront Commission model: Advertising: use Sell data: sell
fee or a subscription commission fee mobile platforms to aggregated data and
based model for charged for advertise other trend analysis
services recommended 3rd services (both internal
party services and external)

Cost Opex reduction: use more efficient 3rd party Capex reduction: reduce technology change
services in place of internal operations to lower spend by using 3rd parties and developer
cost to serve communities to develop customer applications

Valuation Market share: maximise customer acquisition and retention to drive a higher equity valuation
through offering products for free or at heavily discounted rates compared to incumbents

Source: PwC Strategy&

The future of banking is open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity 15
Market players CMA9 Banks
are responding in
Large banks are treating Open Banking Defensive: Most large banks recognise
different ways to as an important programme, both for that Open Banking may lead to a
the opportunities regulatory compliance and strategic weakening of their relationships with
and threats reasons. Executives we interviewed customers. It is highly plausible that
discussed deploying offensive and customers will increasingly engage
Most financial services firms defensive strategies. directly with well-designed 3rd
recognise the disruptive potential party applications and use this as
Offensive: Open Banking is seen the interface to an array of banking
of Open Banking, and cite it as
as a key factor within banks’ digital products and services from multiple
being a key strategic priority to be
strategies. Banks appreciate that they providers. Taken to an extreme,
addressed. Although currently only
have strong brands and are trusted to banks may ultimately become
the CMA9 are forced to implement
look after customers’ money, identities undifferentiated utilities with lower
Open Banking standards, a far
and data. They already have large returns. Banks are reacting by seeking
broader group needs to respond
established customer bases, and see to enhance the customer centricity of
to other related regulation like
Open Banking as a way of enriching their products and platforms and retain
GDPR and PSD2, and indeed are
the functionality and experiences that relevance to customers. If they are able
considering how best to use APIs.
they can offer. This would typically to keep pace with the innovation and
In order to build out an be through better use of analytics usability of new competitor offerings,
understanding of how the banking and personalisation, combining data most customers will likely continue
landscape could change in the future already held by the bank with data to use banks for the majority of their
we interviewed a wide range of gathered from other institutions and financial services.
industry leaders to understand how sources. In this way, banks hope to
players will react to Open Banking. provide more relevant products and Banks are also concerned that
services to their existing customers, customers may be exposed to a range
and to increase their market share by of threats associated with security
attracting new customers. Banks who and data loss. Even if an incident
recognise that they lack the agility, is not caused by the bank, there is
speed or innovation of competing start- a likelihood that they will suffer
ups, can complement their offerings collateral damage to their reputation,
through partnerships with FinTechs and may be expected to help remedy
who can add value to the bank’s the issue which will incur cost. Many
customers as part of a controlled and banks therefore feel it important that
trusted ecosystem. they help educate customers about
the risks of data sharing; ensure that
the APIs are used to increase security
and safety, not decrease it. They also
plan to rigorously validate that firms
are appropriately authorised to access
their APIs.

16 The future of banking is open The future of banking is open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity 16
 id-sized banks and
M Specialist lenders
building societies
Perhaps due to the scope of the first
Mid-sized banks and building societies
wave of Open Banking regulation
are generally waiting to see how the
that emphasises current accounts,
CMA9 respond, what new competitors
specialist lenders have been slower to
emerge and how customers respond
respond to Open Banking. Progressive
to new Open Banking offerings.
companies do however recognise that
While they have similar concerns to
better sharing of data could result in
the big institutions about the risk of
a rethink of their distribution models.
disruption and disintermediation, they
Better integration with marketplaces,
are often constrained in their ability
aggregators and comparison sites
to treat this as a top strategic priority.
means being able to increase the
They do not have the same pressing
speed with which product variants
regulatory imperative to re-architect
can be introduced and presented to a
their systems, and do not have the
wide audience.
budget to invest in adventurous Open
Banking propositions. The ability to analyse rich data used
for pricing specialised risks could
Furthermore these organisations
transform the way they operate. It is
appreciate that they are typically not as
expected that specialist lenders will
nimble as smaller technology-centric
pay more attention as the sharing of
firms, and are concerned by a risk of
banking data matures and expands,
falling behind. They have therefore
and in particular if an array of new
starting developing propositions and
lending propositions is introduced
partnerships to offer the functionality
by FinTechs.
which will be seen as hygiene factors
in future. Although the mid-sized
banks and building societies see the
potential to use Open Banking to leap-
frog their competition (for example
by rapidly extending their geographic
reach or product offering) they are not
yet willing to take significant risk to
pursue this.

The future of banking is open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity 17
Digital-only banks Figure 10: Monzo and Revolut customer growth (000’s, 2015/16-2018)
Open Banking is a core concept Monzo digital bank
for many digital banks, who have Customer growth 000’s (2016 – 2018) Total PCA (568k)
built their systems with customer-
centricity, partnerships and continuous
innovation in mind, and whose
platforms have modern, modular 600
architectures that lend themselves +1,276%
to API-based sharing. Although the 400
digital-only banks are not mandated
to implement the same standard APIs
200
as the CMA9, some have voluntarily
adopted the use of open APIs and
many have already developed bespoke 0
Mar-16 Mar-17 Mar-18
open APIs that offer extended
Source: PwC Strategy&
functionality. These are offered to
developer communities and customers Revolut
to encourage creation of relevant Total prepaid
Customer growth 000’s (2015 – 2018) accounts (1.5m)
new propositions, and digital banks
have also looked to form partnerships
with other providers to extend their
1,500
usefulness to customers. While
the digital-only banks do not need +19,283%
Open Banking to succeed, in many 1,000
respects they are seen as the natural
champions for it, with positively 500
predisposed customers.
0
Evidence of the potential success of
Jul-15 Jul-16 Jul-17 Feb-18
digital-only banks is already forming,
with an impressive uptake of financial Source: Monzo, Revolut
services offerings by customers and an
increase in the number of application Figure 11: New UK Digital banks (banking licence issue date, 2015-2018)
for banking licences by these players.

Revolut

Monzo N 26

Tandem Bank Marcus

B Fidor Bank IAm Bank

Atom Bank Starling Bank Civilised Bank Lintel Bank

OakNorth Bank Clear Bank Chetwood Fire

2015 2016 2017/18 Planned/Pending

Source: Bank of England, FinTech Futures

18 The future of banking is open


The future of banking is 2016
2015 open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity
2017/18 Pending 19
FinTech service providers Figure 12: Venture capitalist investment raised by UK FinTech
(£millions, 2013-2017); investment by type %, 2017)
FinTech service providers have been
eagerly awaiting Open Banking.
While most successful FinTechs are
recognised for their ability to develop
and deliver useful applications, many 1,340
struggle due to a limited customer base. CAGR +74%
As FinTechs are intrinsically focused
on providing financial solutions, access
768
to financial data is critical for them
to create new solutions and to prove 503
384
their value to prospective users. Many
firms have therefore resorted to screen 145
scraping, but they fear this deters more
customer from using their service. 2013 2014 2014 2016 2017

Open Banking therefore addresses


many of their challenges. Although
most FinTechs stress that they don’t
need Open Banking to be successful,
it does provide an opportunity for
providers to rapidly scale up their 26%
24% Digital banks
customer bases – partly by offering
customers a low-commitment and Lending
low-risk means of trying them out, but
also by being present on marketplaces
Wealth management
which could attract a large customer
17% Capital markets
base (e.g. if offered by an incumbent 14%
bank). In addition, Open Banking InsurTech
provides standardised data which
providers can run through machine 3%
5%
11% Other
learning algorithms to develop richer
insight. Critically, this data can be
shared in a secure way that should Source: London and Partners, CB Insights, Innovate Finance
ease concerns about the ability to use
data safely.

This new opportunity has coincided


with an increased level of investment
in the UK venture capital space,
particularly in payments start-ups and
digital banks.

20 The future of banking is open


Payments providers
Traditional payment schemes and systems are already facing significant change due to the shift towards digital and mobile
payments; the emergence of cryptocurrencies and associated ledger technology; and increased customer expectations
about the speed, cost and flexibility of payments. Open Banking adds further potential to disrupt incumbents by enabling
payment initiation from 3rd parties. With the ability to directly transact account to account in near real-time, the use
of traditional debit and credit cards are potentially under threat. However, incumbent payment providers are already
reacting by enhancing their offerings to increase speed and reduce cost, emphasising valuable features already embedded
in their models (e.g. chargebacks and dispute resolution) and developing supplemental propositions such as identity and
age verification.

Credit reference agencies (CRAs)


As firms whose business models are based on the effective analysis of customer data, credit reference agencies are
particularly aware and interested in Open Banking developments. On the one hand, Open Banking could present a
significant threat. With more widespread access to transaction data from multiple sources, it seems credible that other
organisations (e.g. banks, lenders or FinTechs) should be able to develop new solutions to replace the scoring currently
carried out by the CRAs. On the other hand, the fact that the CRAs have ambitious plans and are moving rapidly to develop
more sophisticated offerings based on AI and Open Banking suggests that they might actually be beneficiaries of the
shift. By marrying an even more sophisticated understanding of customers (based on existing and new sources of data)
with a comprehensive view of offerings in the market, the CRAs can extend their scope and effectively match solutions
to individuals.

Financial advisors
There is a long history of companies providing automated solutions to help individuals and companies to manage their
finances better. These range from online personal finance management tools that help people categorise their spending,
set behavioural goals and track their financial activity with easy to use dashboards; to cloud-based software packages that
integrate functionality for business management, payments, cash and credit management, accounting, and management
information. In many cases these tools already have direct links to users’ bank accounts, with customers entering their
banking login credentials into the 3rd party solution. Open Banking will help these solution providers by simplifying the
development effort needed to integrate with banks, improve security and ultimately to enhance their functionality. However,
the fact that it is easier to integrate with banks will mean that others can increasingly do the same. This opens up the
possibility of existing players or new competitors entering the space to try become customers’ preferred provider of financial
management solutions.

Comparison sites
Product comparison sites have developed an influential position in customers’ decision making journeys as they enable
individuals to survey the market for new products, compare providers’ offerings and make informed decisions about the
relative features and benefits (e.g. BillMonitor in the telecoms industry). At present these sites ask users to enter personal
data about their own financial position, behaviour and needs, and use this to filter a list of products available in the market.
Open Banking provides the opportunity to gather more accurate and comprehensive customer data with far less effort, and
also allows 3rd parties to gather up-to-date information about the products available from major financial services providers.
It is therefore likely that Open Banking would help to enhance, streamline and accelerate the way comparison sites work.
The challenge for these firms is that other parties should be able to replicate similar analysis using Open Banking data,
potentially challenging the comparison sites’ unique selling point.

Technology giants
Many executives at incumbent financial services providers expressed concern about the potential entry of technology giants
into the financial services space. With investment power, a proven ability to innovate at pace and release sophisticated new
products, and a reputation for really understanding what customers want, technology companies seem well positioned to
enter the market. They have large existing customer bases, unparalleled reach and brand strength, and customers who
regularly share significant amounts of personal data with them.

However, technology giants may not wish to be burdened with the regulatory expectations of being a fully licensed bank,
especially when operating in multiple jurisdictions internationally and as of yet none have been authorised as a PISP or
AISP. Technology companies are therefore more likely to choose specific sections of the value chain to disrupt, for example
payments. Some technology companies will choose to partner with banks, to offer integrated solutions that utilise their scale
and platform technology, whilst allowing the bank to focus on services (i.e. risk management, compliance) that they are
better placed to deliver.
The future of banking is open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity 21
Figure 13: Open Banking key threats and opportunities (non-exhaustive)

Key threats Example opportunities

Banks Falling behind more technologically advanced Develop greater customer understanding and
competitors (new and existing) increase market share

Building societies Loss of customers to incumbent banks or new Offer existing customer base better functionality and
players due to new propositions that better meet attract a wider pool of customers
changing customer needs

Payment providers Reduced use of debit and credit cards as customers Become part of the core payments infrastructure for
shift to PISPs Open Banking participants

Credit reference Open data enables superior credit scoring that Utilise open data to supplement existing capabilities
agencies reduces need for CRAs and improve their services and increase usage

Digital banks Incumbent banks develop equivalent digital Become the platform of choice due to first mover
platforms and customer mistrust hinders adoption advantage and superior customer engagement

FinTechs Increased competition due to the emergence of more Significantly increase customer base through access
3rd party providers to integrated platforms and market places

Source: PwC Strategy&

22 The future of banking is open


Figure 14: Potential Open Banking scenarios

Customer demand for


new products

A B
Rapid innovation
Domination by
driven by
large progressive
incumbents and
corporates
new entrants
C
Increase in market Steady Increase in market
consolidation evolution fragmentation
D E
Big entities
Price war and
survive in
undifferentiated
highly regulated
offerings
environment

Customer demand for


stability and security

Source: PwC Strategy&

The future of banking is open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity 23
A number of different Domination by large progressive corporates:
scenarios may emerge A Corporates invest heavily in new digital platforms and marketing
initiatives, developing innovative products and fairer pricing whilst
with different groups leveraging their large customer base.
benefiting
Rapid innovation driven by incumbents and new entrants:
Open Banking could lead to a number
of market scenarios impacting B FinTechs take discrete parts of value chain, driving banks to innovate
through new propositions and revenue streams underpinned by
profitability and competition:
updated infrastructure.

Steady evolution:
C Large banks continue to dominate the value chain due to their large
deposit base, customer trust, and account switching inertia, with some
innovation and fairer pricing through FinTech offerings.

Big entities survive in highly regulated environment:


D Apprehension over new regulatory changes leads both FinTechs
and banks to wait before implementing new propositions with some
FinTechs failing.

Price war and undifferentiated offerings:


E Better data sharing and inclusion leads to banking products
being treated as ‘utilities’ and a race to the bottom on price with
limited innovation.

24 The future of banking is open


Open Banking could drive benefits for the industry Regulators need to
as a whole but may have unintended consequences ensure sufficient speed
There are a number of possible outcomes, with Open Banking potentially of progress while
driving significant benefits in the areas of data sharing, financial accessibility, protecting customers
bank infrastructure, product innovation and pricing. Equally, there is a risk of
unintended consequences, with potentially harmful consequences. In order for Open Banking to
succeed, regulators need to ensure
implementation progresses at a good
Figure 15: Potential benefits and unintended consequences of Open Banking pace and that the scope is widened
Potential benefits Unintended consequences beyond current accounts and the
CMA9. Opening up other retail
Data sharing Removal of manual data Increased number of data and SME products such as credit
entry with data sharing only breaches, fraud and
undertaken with regulator phishing cards and savings products are the
approved 3rd parties logical next step and would enhance
propositions that focus on providing
Financial Wider choice of providers Increased exclusion as low an aggregated view of a customer’s
accessibility and easier access to credit quality customers are financial life. In addition, any entities
short-term credit, with more easily identified and covered by PSD2 are likely to come
improved financial planning some customers are
into scope.
and insight tools technically excluded

Bank Updated banking Persistent lack of clarity over However, protecting customer data
infrastructure infrastructure and enhanced regulation leading to delayed should remain the main priority and
data management implementation and uptake regulators should carefully monitor
data usage and security protocols. A
major data breach could significantly
Product Development of new Increased capital/funding
impact Open Banking customer
innnovation propositions given the issues due to deposits moving
availability of customer data rapidly between different uptake. Regulators need to ensure
to approved FinTechs banks and countries (i.e. cash that customers receive adequate
sweeping) value of service in exchange for
Pricing Competitive pricing and Reduced ability to price for the data they share through Open
value for money given a bundle products and price Banking.
larger number of providers wars due to commoditised
products and providers There is also a risk that Open
Banking leads to financial exclusion,
Source: PwC Strategy& as those with poor spending habits
or those that refuse to opt-in are
charged higher prices or even
rejected as potential customers.

The future of banking is open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity 25
What will it mean for
customers and what is the
size of the opportunity?
Current awareness is Following its launch on 13 January 2018, customer awareness of Open Banking
has remained relatively low amongst retail customers, with only 18% aware of
low but is significantly its meaning. However, 42% of SMEs are already aware of Open Banking.
higher for SMEs than
retail customers Figure 16: C
 ustomers aware of the meaning of Open Banking/PSD2
(% of customers surveyed, 2018)

42

24

18

Retail SME

Open Banking PSD2

Source: PwC Research

In addition, after an initial surge in public searches upon launch, interest in


Open Banking and has trailed off in recent months.

Figure 17: U
 K search data for term "Open Banking" (Google search
“For Open Banking to trends, Jan-May 2018)*
succeed providers need to 100

persuade customers that 80

there is a valid reason to 60

give up their information” 40

(Head of Strategy, UK Credit 20


Reference Agency)
0
Jan Feb Mar Apr May

Source: Google

*Numbers represent search interest relative to the highest point on the chart for the given region and time.
A value of 100 is the peak popularity for the term. A value of 50 means that the term is half as popular. A
score of 0 means there was not enough data for this term.

26 The future of banking is open


The future of banking is open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity 27
Low awareness of Open Banking and PSD2 has been driven by a number of
factors, including:

1 Low press coverage 2 A lack of marketing 3 Few disruptive


by banks propositions have been
On the day before the launch of Open As yet Open Banking is not a focus developed so far
Banking the BBC hailed Open Banking of banks’ marketing efforts. Given Only 24 AISPs and 5 PISPs had been
as “A fundamental change to the way the continuing uncertainty around approved with the FCA as at the
people can bank, manage and spend elements of the regulation, banks have beginning of May 2018. This is not
their money in the digital world is concerns about promoting data sharing surprising given that since the ‘soft
under way”. and where liability lies. For those that launch’ of Open Banking there still
are beginning to speak to customers, appears to be uncertainty over who
However, due to a perceived lack of
much of the dialogue is within needs to get an AISP or PISP licence
progress, Open Banking and PSD2
communications about ramping up and how these licences may change in
have not received a great deal of press
existing products. Banks will become the future. It appears many developers
coverage since then.
much more vocal once they have a are waiting to understand if they
Perhaps understandably there has strong proposition to offer customers. can simply partner with registered
been a more challenging tone to the organisations such as OpenWrks and
coverage that has appeared, which has bypass the need to do it themselves.
focused on the potential unintended PISP registration, in particular, has
consequences of Open Banking. been slow given the inevitable lag
between when APIs become available,
and the time needed to build and
register new propositions before
releasing them to customers.

“Open Banking? I think I'll keep my “We are not pursuing PISP accreditation
door shut” yet as it’s so up in the air what it means”
(The Guardian) (CEO, UK Digital Bank)

“Fraud fears over ‘Open Banking’ “T here is still ambiguity over who needs
revolution” to get an AISP licence”
(The Times) (CEO, UK Open Banking FinTech)

“Open Banking’ revolution will leave “Open Banking is overrated right now,
account holders at mercy of ‘hackers and but underrated in the long term – there
thieves’, banks warn” is no pressing urgency to do anything
(The Telegraph) right now, the market posture is to wait
and see”
(Head of Digital Strategy, UK Challenger Bank)

28 The future of banking is open The future of banking is open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity 28
The future of banking is open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity 29
Satisfaction with Although Open Banking was initiated on the premise that the concentrated
incumbents and data banking landscape was not providing enough choice for customers and by inference
that incumbents could get away with poor service, there are a high number of
security concerns customers who seem to be satisfied with their existing banks and are not looking to
create headwinds for switch providers in the near future.
new players
Figure 18: C
 ustomers’ satisfaction with their main current account provider,
and likelihood to switch (% of customers surveyed, 2018)

33

23

19

13

4 4

1 2
1 0

1- 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10-
Very dissatisfied Very satisfied

Excludes 0.2% of respondents who did not know


Source: PwC Research

23

20

17

15

11

Definitely Very Fairly Neither Fairly Very Definitely


not unlikely unlikely likely or likely likely
unlikely

Excludes 6% of respondents who did not know


Source: PwC Research

30 The future of banking is open


Figure 19: SMEs’ satisfaction with their main business current account
provider, and likelihood to switch (% of SMEs surveyed, 2018)

25

18
17

13

8 8

3
2 2
1

1- 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10-
Very dissatisfied Very satisfied

Excludes 1% of respondents who did not know & 4% of respondents who said N/A

Source: PwC Research

25

22

19

13

11

Definitely Very Fairly Neither Fairly Very Definitely


not unlikely unlikely likely or likely likely
unlikely

Source: PwC Research

The future of banking is open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity 31
Moreover, customers and SMEs Figure 20: C
 ustomer & SME consideration of different providers
generally prefer incumbent banks to
manage their financial products over Average net brand consideration for financial products / services
challenger banks, digital banks and
technology companies. This trend to 72%
favour larger incumbents is also in
part due to low awareness of FinTech 65%
offerings, for example 69% of SMEs
surveyed were unable to name any
digital start-ups or FinTechs.

It appears that incumbent banks


maintain a trust advantage for data 40%
38%
protection for certain propositions
and as long as none of the major retail
providers suffers a data breach, this
26%
may continue for some time.
18%

Big banks Big tech companies Digital only banks

Customer SME

Source: PwC Research

Figure 21: Customers comments on the concept of Open Banking (2018)

“I think it sounds like a “Not for me. I am quite


good idea. However, I would satisfied with one bank
want to find out more having my details and I
detail in the terms and think a lot of people will
conditions regarding what also think that. I’d worry it
information is shared and wasn’t safe”
how it is stored”

Source: PwC Research

32 The future of banking is open


For those that are familiar with the concept of Open Banking, the risks of data management, fraud and loss of privacy are a
major concern for both customers and SMEs.

Figure 22: Customer spontaneous concerns to Open Banking data sharing (% of Customers surveyed, 2018)
0
5
Vulnerability to fraud/identity theft/hacking Source: PwC Research survey

Security – in general 10
Net%
How will the data be used/ How can you keep track of this
Security 48%
7
Unsolicited contact/spam No concerns 3%
7

15
Invasion of privacy
6
Concerns with the regulation – i.e. who can access this data

15
5
Excludes 26% who did not know
Abuse of information 4
Concerned – in general 2

20
Need to ask for permission 1
A lot of data is shared already 1

25
30
35
38

40

Figure 23: S
 ME spontaneous concerns to Open Banking data sharing (% of SMEs surveyed, 2018)
0
5
Security – in general Source: PwC Research survey

Privacy/loss of data ownership (e.g. intellectual rights) 10


Net%
Fraud
Security 54%
Confidentiality No concerns 7%
7
15

Unsure what it will be used for


7 Excludes 29% who did not know
Unsolicited contact/spam 3
15

GDPR 2
18

Data loss 1
20

Already avoid sharing information 1


No clear benefits 1
23

25

The future of banking is open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity 33
This low awareness and hesitation to Figure 24: Customers who agree that Open Banking means…
share data manifests itself most clearly (% of customers surveyed, 2018)
when customers and SMEs are then
asked what they believe Open Banking Financial providers will offer you
46 25 11 18
actually means. A large proportion more personalised products
of both customers and SMEs believe You will save money on your 28 26 21 24
that Open Banking could mean more financial products
personalised products with the benefits Financial products will have
more competitive rates 36 26 16 23
of saving money on existing products as
(e.g. interest rates)
well as on new ones. However, a greater
proportion believe that Open Banking is
a potential security issue with increased
Your details will be more at
opportunities for fraud, invasion of 64 14 8 14
risk of fraud
privacy and loss of control over financial
data. There is also a large proportion Your privacy may be impacted 68 15 6 11
who are unsure on the implications of
Open Banking. You will have less control over 47 18 18 17
your financial data

Net agree Neither agree or disagree Net disagree Don’t know

Source: PwC Research

Figure 25: SMEs who agree that Open Banking means… (% of SMEs
surveyed, 2018)
Financial providers will offer you
37 29 17 17
more personalised products

You will save money on your 24 33 24 19


financial products
Financial products will have
more competitive rates 31 34 18 17
(e.g. interest rates)

Your details will be more at


63 20 4 13
risk of fraud

Your privacy may be impacted 62 19 8 11

You will have less control over 52 23 10 14


your financial data

Net agree Neither agree or disagree Net disagree Don’t know

Source: PwC Research

“Customers' trust has driven the big banks' dominance and


it will continue to do so, it is just the type of trust we have
that has changed”
(CEO UK FinTech)

34 The future of banking is open


Although customers are used to sharing Figure 26: C
 ustomers willingness to share personal information (% of
data in modern society to gain access customers surveyed who were not averse to sharing data type, 2018)
to certain digital services, financial 31
data provides detailed insight into
people’s day to day lives which makes
it very personal. In fact, our survey
showed that people are more willing
to share medical data than some forms
of financial data. SMEs, however, 18
are much more willing to share
information about their businesses. 13
12
10
7

Full name Phone Medical Financial Transaction Bank


number history products history balance
Source: PwC Research

Figure 27: SMEs willingness to share business information (% of customers


surveyed who were not averse to sharing data type, 2018)
86
79

40
36
30
23

Business Phone Current Financial Transaction Bank


name number suppliers product holdings history balance
Source: PwC Research

In the face of this current low awareness and hesitation on the part of customers,
all of our interviewees agree that until there is a meaningful proposition that grabs
people’s attention, customers cannot be expected to know (or care) about specific
banking regulations or the technology architecture that links different systems.

“General awareness of Open Banking is low and there is a lot of reticence around sharing
data. Until a meaningful proposition is developed no one will care”
(Head of Digital Strategy, UK Challenger Bank)

“It took Amazon and Ebay to come along before it was worth customers undertaking
e-banking payments. Until customers see the types of services that could be developed
using Open Banking, they will not be willing to share data”
(Head of UK Open Banking FinTech)

The future of banking is open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity 35
Similar challenges have This lack of awareness and appetite accelerated by merchant adoption of
is not unique and need not be too contactless Point of Sale platforms and
been overcome before in concerning. As one digital bank in particular through the accelerated
adjacent industries executive claimed, customers do not adoption of contactless payment
need to be aware of Open Banking to for public transport. For example
enjoy the benefits of the propositions Transport for London’s investment
which it enables. Moreover, examples in a contactless programme, which
of successful banking technology has resulted in more than 2 million
deployments have shown that a slow journeys being made every day using
start can often be followed by a rapid contactless, accounting for 40% of all
exponential uptake. pay-as-you-go journeys.

For example, although contactless What initially seemed like a marginal


cards have been in circulation since benefit to customers (saving a few
2007, contactless payment usage was seconds for a small transaction) has
low until as recently as 2015, but been enough to drive massive adoption
now accounts for ~40% of all card and has outweighed security concerns.
payments. Similar to Open Banking, With Open Banking, a similar trigger
customers were initially reluctant that enhances usability could accelerate
to use contactless due to security uptake. This is likely to be a strong use
concerns. However, uptake was case where the benefits outweigh any
potential security concerns.

Figure 28: Number of contactless cards, contactless transaction usage and


bank owned PoS terminals in the UK (millions, 2014-2017)
600

500

400

300

200

100

0
Jul-14 Jan-15 Jul-15 Jan-16 Jul-16 Jan-17 Jul-17
Number of monthly contactless transactions (mn) Number of bank owned POS terminals (000’s)
Number of Contactless Cards issued (mn)

Source: UK Finance, The UK Cards Association

36 The future of banking is open


Uptake will vary SME uptake of Open Banking is SME adoption of Open Banking is
expected to be significant expected to grow in line with the
across SMEs and retail scale and benefits associated with the
customers over the next Currently, SMEs have a greater propositions, akin to the rise of other
five years awareness of the meaning and a new technologies. Given relatively
better understanding of the potential high awareness and excitement around
effects of Open Banking than retail Open Banking for SMEs, the initial rate
customers. A total of 40% of surveyed of adoption is expected to be steep. As
SMEs indicated that they would not be initial enthusiasm subsides and there
averse to sharing financial transaction is latency before propositions realise
data if offered by their business current their full potential, SME adoption is
account providers. As a result 2.3m expected to slow before increasing
SMEs are expected to comprise the again. The number of SMEs that have
addressable market by the end of 2018. adopted Open Banking by 2022 is
Of this addressable base, 60% of SMEs expected to reach 4.8m, representing
believe that Open Banking will have 71% of total UK SMEs.
an effect on their day-to-day business
banking activities.

Figure 29: Open Banking addressable SME market (millions, 2018-22)

3.4

5.7

2.3

UK SMEs OB addressable SMEs

Source: PwC Strategy&, PwC Research

Figure 30: Forecast growth of addressable SME market (millions, 2018-2022)


% of SME
population
5.0 71%
4.5
4.0
3.5
3.0
2.5
2.0
0.0
2018 2019 2020 2021 2022

Source: ONS, PwC SME OB survey, PwC Strategy&

The future of banking is open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity 37
Retail customer uptake Figure 31: Open Banking addressable retail customers (millions, 2018)
of Open Banking is
expected to scale over
the next five years
While retail customers have a lower
awareness of Open Banking than
SMEs, they still represent a significant
addressable customer base. A total of
23% of survey respondents indicated
that they would not be averse to sharing
a range of personal financial data.
Controlling for individuals that do not
bank online, which were excluded from
the survey, results in an addressable
market of 16% of the total UK adult
population (8.1m retail customers).
Source: PwC Strategy&, PwC Research

Willingness to share data is significantly


higher with younger people, who
comprise the majority of the Open
Banking addressable retail customer
base. This appears to be somewhat
aligned with the current views of “Certain generations will simply not engage with Open
financial services industry.
Banking… Millennials and Centennials are much more
willing to share data and trust institutions with data.
These are the segments that banks will have to fight for.”
(Head of Risk Solutions, Major UK Retail Bank)

However, in contrast to the industry Figure 32: Open Banking addressable retail customers by age (%, 2018)
view, older people still constitute a
Total UK OB
sizeable proportion of the addressable
addressable (m)
retail customer base, with Open
Banking expected to impact 1.55 1.58 1.89 1.27 0.89 0.93 8.1
all demographics.

79% 80% 80% 84% 88% 91%

21% 20% 20% 16% 12% 9%


18 - 24 25 - 34 35 - 44 45 - 54 55 - 64 65+

UK population by age

Not willing to share data OB addressable

Source: PwC Strategy&, PwC Research

38 The future of banking is open


Similarly, the impact is expected to be equally pervasive across different regions of the UK. Whilst London is expected to have
the highest participation rate, there is a widespread distribution of addressable retail customers.

Figure 33: Open Banking addressable retail customers by location (2018)

Scotland
OB addressable % of regional adults OB 14
market addressable

8.11
Wales 0.34
NI 0.38
0.55 North 16
Scotland
% of regional adults OB
addressable
London 1.34
15
Northern Ireland
South 1.58 % of regional adults
OB addressable 17
Midlands
% of regional adults OB
addressable
Wales
North 1.82 14
% of regional adults OB
addressable

21

South 15 London
Midlands 2.10
% of regional adults OB % of regional adults OB
addressable addressable

OB
addressable
market (m)

Source: PwC Strategy&, PwC Research

UK population by age
The future of banking is open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity 39
The likelihood of participating in Open Banking varies depending on attitudes towards technology and banking. Comfort
with new technology and openness to using FinTechs are strong indicators of a willingness to participate in Open Banking.
Likeliness to switch current account and the extent of multi-banking also correlates with a greater willingness to share data.

Figure 34: Open Banking addressable retail customers key characteristics (2018)

Characteristic Open Banking propensity Comments


(% of segment willing to share data, 2018)

Attitudes a Comfort 25 The more comfortable with


20 23
towards with new 18 technology a consumer feels, the
tech technology more likely they are to participate in
Open Banking

Very low Low High Very high

Openness 35 Those who are open to using a


b
to types of 25 FinTech to provide financial services
financial 22 are more likely to participate in Open
providers Banking

Bank Tech FinTech

Attitudes c Likeliness 38 Consumers who are definitely likely


towards to switch 26 to switch current account are well
banking current 16 18 over twice as likely to participate in
account Open Banking as those who say they
definitely would not switch
Definitely not Fairly unlikely Fairly likely Definitely

d Number of 41 Consumers who hold four current


current 28 accounts are over twice as likely to
accounts 20 23 participate in Open Banking as those
held who only hold one

1 2 3 4

Source: PwC Strategy&, PwC Research

40 The future of banking is open


However, in contrast to those Figure 35: Open Banking addressable retail customers base overview (2018)
individuals most willing to share data,
the majority of the addressable retail
customer base are not as comfortable Age
with new technology and are less likely
to have multiple current accounts. Young Old
Lower income earners also represent a
large segment of the addressable base
despite likelihood of adopting Open Location
Banking being greatest with higher
Urban UK wide
income earners. As a result, developing
a broad range of propositions that target
a variety of retail customers will be
Income
critical to capturing the addressable
retail customer base.
Low High
earners earners

Attitude
towards tech
Very Very
low high

Attitude to
multibank
Very Very
low high

Key: Largest OB segment Most likely to share data

Source: PwC Strategy&

The future of banking is open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity 41
Similar to the adoption of other European social networking (steady adoption):
new technologies, growth in uptake
for retail customers will likely be
1 Adoption of social network reflects customers’ willingness to share
personal data online, comfort with a new platform and desire for a
heavily influenced by the benefits personalised service.
created from new Open Banking
enabled propositions. Three previous UK contactless cards (late adoption):
technology adoption growth cases, that
have a range of similarities to Open
2 Adoption of Contactless cards reflects customers’ willingness to share
financial data, comfort with increased risk of fraud and desire for
Banking, have been used to forecast
convenient products and services. Importantly, contactless cards also
future scenarios:
reflect the latency associated from benefits of a new technology as the
adoption rate increases over time with the number of use cases (e.g.
London Underground contactless card acceptance).

Tablet computers (early adoption):


3 Adoption of tablets reflects customers’ comfort with new technology
and demand for convenient, user-friendly products and services. It also
demonstrates the impact of slowing proposition innovation, as uptake
plateaus following rapid initial growth.

Figure 36: Open Banking addressable retail customers growth scenarios


(millions, 2018 - 22E)
Growth % of adult
scenario population
34
32.7
32 3 64%

30
28 27.7 2 54%

26 25.5
1 50%
24
22
20
18
16
14
12
10
8
0
2018 2019 2020 2021 2022

Source: PwC Strategy&

The UK Open Banking addressable retail customer base is expected to increase


“Customer reactions and from 8.1m in 2018 to between 25.5 – 32.7m in 2022

expectations are a very


As a result, over the next five years the The path that Open Banking retail
powerful driver for Open number of addressable retail customers customer uptake follows will depend to
Banking” in the UK is expected to increase from a great extent on customers’ perception
(CEO, UK Digital Bank) 8.1m in 2018 to between 25.5 – 32.7m of value derived from sharing data. The
in 2022. ability of incumbent and new players
to create innovative and value adding
propositions will fundamentally
influence perceptions, and drive
growth in customer uptake.
42 The future of banking is open
Open Banking has the Across a range of selected SME and with £2.1bn in revenue by 2022. New
retail customer propositions, there entrants are expected to threaten
potential to create a is a potential revenue opportunity existing bank overdraft revenues
revenue opportunity of of £2.3bn by the end of 2018. This by leveraging transactional data to
at least £7.2bn by 2022 represents £1.8bn of revenue at automatically identify opportunities to
risk (i.e. existing financial services offer customer lower cost alternatives.
revenue that might be taken by new or
existing players) for incumbents and Alternatives to existing price
£0.5bn of new incremental revenue comparison platforms are anticipated
opportunities. By 2022, based on to be the fastest growing opportunities
the expectations for SME and retail with CAGR of 42% over 2018-22.
customer adoption, it is forecast Aggregation of different financial
that the total revenue of the selected product holdings and increased
propositions will reach £7.2bn. transparency over standing orders and
Incremental revenue is expected to direct debits will enable new entrants
represent £1.3bn with the remaining to offer tailored price comparisons
£5.9bn representing revenue at risk to retail customers. Switching from
for incumbents. existing price comparison platforms to
an Open Banking enabled proposition
Retail money management represents is expected to be high given the
the largest Open Banking opportunity reduction in effort on behalf of the
with £2.4bn in revenue by 2022. customer.
Holistic, tailored investment solutions
are expected to become the new Furthermore, other Open Banking
normal as new and existing players enabled propositions that have not been
leverage the greater amount of quantified are likely to materialise over
information available on clients. Retail the foreseeable future. The total impact
overdraft decoupling is also anticipated of these opportunities on the financial
to become a significant opportunity services landscape could significantly
surpass £7.2bn.

Figure 37: Open Banking forecast revenue opportunities (£billions, 2018-22E)

8 Other potential OB revenue opportunities

7.2 SME dynamic payroll


Incremental
7 SME integrated accounting revenue
Retail credit scoring
2018
5.9 Retail bespoke lending
6
£0.5bn
SME bespoke lending
Retail utilities management
5 2022
4.6
Retail aggregation
£1.3bn

4 3.7
Retail overdraft decoupling
Revenue at
3 risk
2.3
2018
2
£1.8bn

Retail money management 2022


1
£5.9bn

0
2018 2019 2020 2021 2022

Source: PwC Strategy&


The future of banking is open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity 43
How should firms respond?

Firms should focus on a few differentiating capabilities


The size and potential impact of Open PwC Strategy&’s unique approach to
Banking means that firms cannot strategy, ‘Capability-driven Strategy’7
afford to ignore the topic. Incumbent provides a proven framework for
organisations need to understand developing practical strategies. This
how their current business models emphasises the need for coherence
are threatened and have a plan to between a company’s unique value
defend or improve their positioning. proposition, capabilities, and fit of
Ambitious competitors who recognise products and services. Successful
the potential to increase their customer companies have a clear vision of who
relevance, add value and grow their they want to be, aligning their strategic
presence have to be decisive about direction to the capabilities that make
how they are going to compete in an them unique.
increasingly crowded space.
Within an Open Banking environment,
Inherent uncertainty about how the capability-driven approach is more
the future will unfold – in terms of relevant than ever, with participants
customer uptake, regulatory evolution, competing in a far more targeted way.
competitor actions, and unexpected Customers will increasingly seek
innovations – make it infeasible for best-of-breed solutions, be able to
companies to chase all the possible assemble a portfolio of products and
Open Banking opportunities. They services from different providers, and
need strategies that will help them will no longer require providers to
prepare for the future, guiding decision offer end-to-end solutions or a full set
making about their future business of banking products. It is therefore
models and operating models. They critical that firms make choices about
need to be clear about which customers how they will differentiate themselves,
to target and what propositions to offer; link their propositions to their chosen
where to invest and what to build; who way to play, and focus on building
to work with and hire; and above all the essential capabilities to support
how to develop the agility to cope with this. Non-essential capabilities and
future change. Companies that fail to complementary offerings can be sourced
respond strategically will certainly risk and assembled from partnerships and
missing out on new opportunities, and open marketplaces.
may face more fundamental challenges
to their future viability.

Source: 7PwC Strategy& ‘The Essential Advantage: How to Win with a Capabilities-Driven Strategy’

“This is a market evolution not a market standard”


(CEO, UK FinTech)

44 The future of banking is open


Companies could adopt a number of partnership models
With a shift towards more modular solutions, firms have important choices on how open they will be in working with
partners and other external parties. From our PSD2 survey, we identified that ‘92% of banks state that partnerships with
non-banks will be highly important or important in future’ and that ‘71% of banks agree or fully agree that partners/
collaboration will be required to keep up with the pace of innovation’.

There are three archetypes of models which firms are adopting: in-house, partnership and market place.

Figure 38: Future potential partnership models

In-house model Partnership model Market place model

Operating
Model Third
Third party
service party
Digitally enabled bank provider provider

Third Third
Incumbent
party party
In-house services bank
Incumbent bank provider provider

Third party Third


provider party
provider

Source: PwC Strategy&

The future of banking is open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity 45
In-house model Partnership model Marketplace model
Under this model, firms continue to Under this model, firms would Under this model, some firms would
provide full end-to-end service in- select specific 3rd party providers to become ‘hubs’ of capital and customer
house. Firms would ensure their digital collaborate with (e.g. FinTechs, software data, providing open marketplaces
offering and associated capabilities solution providers or industry utilities). for propositions. Firms embracing
are compelling by expanding The firm would assess potential partners this model would develop multiple
organically and replicating innovation to ensure they are trustworthy, secure open APIs for developer communities
in the market (where this is valued by and would add value to their customers. to accelerate innovation. 3rd party
customers), or by acquiring FinTechs Partners may be limited from working providers would not enter into exclusive
or other disruptive players. The with direct competitors through partnerships but could provide services
firm would encourage customers to exclusivity agreements. Firms would to customers on multiple marketplaces.
remain on own-brand platforms and form ‘ecosystems’ with their partners Customers would be able to access
the organisation would only provide and provide service propositions to functionality and services from multiple
the minimal open APIs required customers that use the combined solution providers and would play an
by regulation. capability of the group. Customers active role in selecting which products,
would be encouraged to use solutions features and services they wish to
from others members of the ecosystems, use. They would also decide which
and closed APIs would be used so application to use as their primary
partners can significantly enhance and interface. In this ‘best API wins’ model,
differentiate their offerings. all other participants risk becoming
utilities, not engaging directly with
customers, but relying on the strength
of their brand and the competitiveness
of their specialist product offerings to
remain relevant.

46 The future of banking is open


Regardless of their The choices that companies make about their future positioning and the way
they will engage with other external parties should determine the capabilities
positioning, successful they build. With multiple credible ways to play and strategic stances, there isn’t a
firms will have some one-size-fits-all approach. Regardless of how the landscape evolves, however, the
common characteristics companies that succeed will have certain common characteristics:

1
They will be truly customer centric, using deep insight about what their
customers really value to drive product development, design of channels
and experience, and pricing.

2
They will be outstanding at data analytics, not only as the basis for
decision making and proposition design, but embedded in products
to provide tailored experiences, real time risk management and
dynamic pricing.

3
They will be excellent at building exciting and secure technology
solutions that allow for new functionality to be developed and deployed
rapidly, and enable safe and easy integration with internal and
external systems.

4
They will be agile and able to adapt to a rapidly changing environment,
with mechanisms to screen what is happening in the market,
assess changing customer preferences and re-orient the business to
remain relevant.

5
They will be skilled at working with other companies in a complex
ecosystem of partnerships and marketplaces, to provide seamless
offerings that integrate the best services available on the market to
their customers.

Developing these attributes will not be straightforward for many established


organisations, with quite radical changes needed to their skills, culture and ways
of working; as well as to the technology platforms which underpin their
digital offerings.

The future of banking is open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity 47
Firms need to address a number of important areas to be confident of success
In order to prepare for Open Banking and be confident that Companies need to be clear on how they will manage cyber
they are taking the right actions to position themselves for security to keep customers, systems and data safe, and how
success, participants will need to address a number of diverse they will safeguard customers against fraud. They will have
questions. These start with strategic topics, including what to make sure that their approach to assessing and managing
the company’s value proposition will be, what capabilities to risk is relevant and practical; assure themselves that they
develop, how to embed customer centricity and develop value can stay abreast of the changing regulatory and legal
adding products, and how to organise and leverage external expectations; and make sure business model choices are
capabilities (whether through partnership or acquisition). informed by a proper understanding of the tax implications.
They include important themes relating to technology,
including how to build and embed differentiating capabilities
like data analytics and AI; and how to architect and develop
modular platforms that facilitate integration and the
deployment of innovative new functionality.

Figure 39: Key Open Banking questions for firms to address

What will your value proposition be and what market How can you build truly customer centric
leading capabilities will you use to compete? propositions and operations?
Strategy
and Customer
How will you achieve full compliance business centricity How can you use partnership,
in a rapidly changing regulatory and model restructuring and deals to stay
legal landscape? ahead of the market?
Deals and
Regulation structure

How will you ensure the array


of new risks are understood
and managed in line with
risk appetitie? Open Data
management
How can you embed world class
data analytics in products?
Risk
Banking and analytics

Technology How will you deliver a modern


Fraud
technology platform that provides
How will you protect customers the agility to rapidly integrate and
against fraud? adapt  systems?
Cyber
Tax
security
How can you build a frame work for
identifying, detecting, protecting and How can you understand the tax
responding to cyber threats? opportunities and implications?

Source: PwC Strategy&

While the future is unpredictable, there are many practical steps that firms can take immediately. Forming a deliberate and
definitive view on the questions above will enable companies to embark on the Open Banking journey with confidence,
equipped to make crucial decisions about which capabilities to build in order to compete, regardless of the eventual scope,
timeframe or uptake of Open Banking.
48 The future of banking is open
Our team

We hope that you have found our report to be interesting and useful. For more
information, please visit www.pwc.co.uk/openbanking or if you would like
to discuss any of the issues raised, please feel free to contact one of the authors
listed below.

Jonathan Turner Martin Roets


Partner – PwC, Open Banking Leader Director – Strategy&, Financial Services
M: +44 (0) 7739 591553 M: +44 (0) 7900 163394
E: [email protected] E: [email protected]

James Cousins David Beardmore


Senior Manager – Strategy&, Commercial Director –
Financial Services Open Data Institute
M: +44 (0) 7455 001300 M: +44 (0) 7718 186861
E: [email protected] E: [email protected]

We would also like to thank a number of individuals who made


significant contributions to this report, including Alexander Bowers,
Cameron McKenzie, Haydon Knights, Asim Khalid, Celia Bell and
Luis Trullenque.
Industry interviews
PwC conducted 25 interviews with executive and Open Banking leads at
banks, technology firms, payment providers, FinTechs, regulators and
industry bodies. PwC Research also surveyed over 1,000 retail banking
and SME customers from across the UK.
Our gratitude goes to all those who kindly participated.

The future of banking is open - how to seize the Open Banking opportunity 49
www.pwc.co.uk/openbanking
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This publication has been prepared for general guidance on matters of interest only, and does not constitute professional advice. You should not act upon the information contained
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Design Services 31419 (06/18).

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