Open Banking in a Box

From Speech to Action: New Service 'Open Banking in a Box' Powers Mansion House Momentum, Fuelling Industry Growth

“The UK must act quickly to seize the opportunities of the future or risk falling behind international peers.” - National Payments Vision, published by HM Treasury November 2024.

The long-anticipated National Payments Vision (NPV) follows Joe Garner’s Future of Payments Review - in which a key recommendation was a clear overall strategy. The Government has now set a vision of a “trusted, world-leading payment ecosystem underpinned by next generation technology, offering users a choice of payment methods”.

The NPV makes a full commitment to unleashing Open Banking payments in the UK: “It is the government’s ambition that seamless account-to-account payments are developed as a ubiquitous payment method” and “unlocking Open Banking enabled account-to-account payments for e-commerce to be a strategic short to medium term priority”. It goes on to affirm that the government's ambition is for the UK to be a world leader in Open Finance. 

Open Banking Excellence (OBE) is building on the momentum generated by the Chancellor's Mansion House speech with its innovative Open Banking in a Box programme. This first-of-its-kind service, already tried, tested, and praised by regulators, is now publicly launching to leverage the UK's global leadership in Open Banking. The programme empowers regulators, drives ecosystem growth, and creates new market opportunities for UK businesses, solidifying the UK’s position as a global fintech leader.

With Open Banking forecast to grow into a $113.3 billion market by 2034, the UK is uniquely positioned to export its expertise while solidifying its status as the global leader in fintech. Open Banking in a Box provides regulators, banks and policymakers with the tools, strategies, and insights needed to capitalise on these opportunities and create lasting economic impact.

Opportunity at Home – The Mansion House Speech

The Chancellor's Mansion House speech outlined a vision for the UK as a hub of financial innovation, underscoring the urgency to act now to retain its leadership. Open Banking in a Box meets this demand by offering a comprehensive solution to enhance the UK's Open Banking ecosystem while showcasing its world-class expertise and innovation.

This programme is designed to help UK businesses expand their reach and drive adoption of Open Banking services across new sectors, bolstering the domestic fintech industry. By focusing on use-case-driven innovation, Open Banking in a Box creates opportunities for collaboration between regulators, banks and businesses to scale impactful solutions that benefit citizens and drive economic growth.

Helen Child, Founder and CEO of OBE, said:

Our 'Open Banking in a Box' initiative is a direct embodiment of the speech's forward-looking ethos, serving as a catalyst to solidify the UK's preeminent position in open banking. This initiative is not just about maintaining our edge in expertise and innovation; it's about amplifying it, thereby fostering an environment where businesses can thrive domestically and on the global stage. The Mansion House speech is the North Star for our sector, it offers a definitive and actionable roadmap for our industry's future.

Opportunity Abroad – Building Momentum with 1033 Regulation

Internationally, new regulatory developments such as the 1033 regulation in the United States are creating fresh momentum for Open Banking, by mandating that banks and other financial institutions allow customers and third parties digital access to their bank accounts.

“With the largest economy in the world entering the market, you have U.S. super size scale plus UK world-class innovation - the perfect equation for global industry growth at this inflection point. Given the clear direction provided by the NPV the stars are aligning for UK Open Banking as a global leader in expertise and innovation.” Open Banking in a Box positions UK businesses to capitalise on these developments, offering advice and supporting UK Open Banking businesses to access market opportunities or risk falling behind our international peers.” says Helen Child, Founder and CEO of OBE, quoting from the NPV.