The Centre for Finance, Innovation and Technology (CFIT) has announced the first Open Finance Coalition partners to further Open Finance in the UK, with FCA regulatory support. CFIT’s mission, as mandated in the Kalifa Review of UK fintech is to enable the growth of financial technology and position the UK as a leader in financial innovation.

The Open Finance Coalition seeks to showcase the power of leveraging financial data to deliver improved financial outcomes for SMEs and consumers alike. As per the announcement, founding coalition partners include the Association of British Insurers, Allen and Overy, Amazon Web Services, Experian, the City of London Corporation, EY, HSBC, IBM, Innovate Finance, iwoca, KPMG, Leeds City Council, Lloyds Banking Group, Mastercard, MBN Solutions, Monzo, Open Banking Limited, the Open Finance Association, Revolut, the Smart Data Foundry, and Zopa Bank, with the support of the FCA. CFIT strategy and the Open Finance Coalition CFIT brings together time-limited coalitions from finance, technology, academia, and policy-making experts to identify and remove obstacles to fintech sector growth, support the creation of high-income tech-based employment throughout the UK, and enable companies to scale globally.

As the Kalifa Review believes Open Finance adoption to bring forth opportunities for improved consumer and financial outcomes in the UK, CFIT announced Open Finance as the focus of its first coalition in April 2023. CFIT has been working in the past weeks on an extensive work programme to validate key Open Finance areas set to be worked on by the coalition. CFIT has prioritised work on showcasing the power of financial data to deliver better financial awareness for consumers and SMEs through a series of in-depth conversations, surveys and research, virtual workshops and interviews, national events and regional showcases that have taken place across the region.

As per the press release, these represent the biggest opportunities to highlight the power of Open Finance, enabling individuals to better manage their savings, cash flow, investments, pensions, and insurance, improving the overall financial health in the UK. The Open Finance Coalition will start its work programme this summer to identify and unlock access to data sources that could potentially better consumer financial outcomes and access to financial services for SMEs. From September, working groups are to expedite the ideation and create specific outputs like new proofs of concept, products, and data partnerships between incumbents and fintech that will help make a difference for UK-based businesses and consumers.

Ezechi Britton MBE, CEO of CFIT advised that they have been prioritising the areas in which effective development of Open Finance and a modernised ecosystem will provide better financial health for UK citizens. Charlotte Crosswell OBE, Chair of CFIT added that given the current challenges related to the cost of living, they believe that leveraging existing data and unlocking new datasets will help impact the wellbeing of UK SMEs and consumers in an expedited manner. Andrew Griffith, MP, Economic Secretary to the Treasury added that their vision is to build on Open Banking’s success in the UK, now used by over seven million consumers and businesses, and create a dynamic and inclusive financial data-sharing market fit for the future, something enabled with CFIT’s initial Open Finance Coalition launch.

Jessica Rusu, Executive Director of Data, Technology, & Innovation, and Sheldon Mills, Executive Director, Consumers and Competition of the FCA said that the FCA prioritises supporting competition and innovation to benefit consumers and businesses. Per their statement, Open Banking and Open Finance can bring transformative benefits to UK financial services and help the region become more competitive and innovative. The FCA is set to assist the coalition by sharing regulatory knowledge and expertise and through their ongoing Open Banking work delivered via the Joint Regulatory Oversight Committee.

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