Businesses will reap the rewards of Open Banking by 2020

• Three-quarters (74%) of businesses in the UK are anticipated to benefit from Open Banking within two years
• Introduced nearly a year ago, 64% of businesses think Open Banking will save them time and nearly 60% say it will save them money
• Yet only 28% of older business decision makers fully understand the initiative, compared to 85% of 18-34-year-olds.

 Three-quarters (74%) of businesses in the UK surveyed by Centtrip, the international payments, treasury management and foreign-exchange specialist, believe they will benefit from Open Banking within two years.

Introduced in January 2018, Open Banking was designed to give customers and companies control of their financial data, enabling them to view it in one place. It was also intended to provide a secure way of sharing that information with third parties and give access to better deals and a wide array of financial products and services.

Now, almost a year on, Centtrip has analysed its, so far slow, uptake by medium-size and large firms. The fintech’s study showed that 64% of businesses agreed that Open Banking will save them time and 58% believed it would also save them money.

With this new and efficient way of managing one’s finances, it came as no surprise that 62% of businesses said it made life easier for staff and 42% noticed a positive impact on their payments and expenses.

Although a considerable amount of development has taken place behind the scenes to make Open Banking available for wider use, 8% businesses still have no idea what it is. The lack of understanding of the benefits of Open Banking has meant that 59% of respondents are not yet reaping its rewards. In fact, only 28% of respondents aged 55 and over said they had a firm grasp of Open Banking compared to 85% of those aged between 18 and 34. 

Brian Jamieson, CEO and co-founder of Centtrip, said: “Open Banking has a huge potential to shift the way financial data is shared and managed. A year on from its launch, we are just starting to understand its benefits and the way it may reshape the financial sector. Even so, many business leaders have yet to reap its rewards and realise its potential to revolutionise the way businesses approach and manage their financial information. Collaboration between fintech and banks is the root to its success. By joining efforts, they can do a lot more than when on their own when it comes to putting it to use.”