The Open Banking Implementation Entity (the ‘OBIE’), the body created by the UK’s largest personal and small business current account providers to create a better way to move, manage and make more of your money, announces that regulated companies are now able to offer new Open Banking services to consumers and businesses.
Since launch on 13 January 2018, the OBIE has operated a ‘Managed Roll Out’ programme designed to prove that this critical new piece of UK financial infrastructure is ready for customers. *1

The Managed Roll Out programme has successfully proven the account data access functionality of the Open Banking system and FCA authorised and registered third parties are now able to offer products based on it to customers.
However, as regulated companies have focused on the Data capabilities of Open Banking, it has not been possible to test the Payments functionality to the same degree and, therefore, new payments-focused services will still be put through extensive
proving as they engage with the system.

Imran Gulamhuseinwala, Trustee of the OBIE, said: “Managed Roll Out has enabled us to introduce a vital new piece of our financial system ready for customers in just a few weeks. We have learned an enormous amount and refined the system to the point where we can be entirely confident that we can now give consumers and businesses real control of their financial data.”

In addition to ending Managed Roll Out, the OBIE has also created a new service for companies coming in to the Open Banking ecosystem. ‘Launch Support’ will provide an end-to-end guidance service for third parties to ensure that they are helped to go live, from obtaining the appropriate regulation to connecting to accounts.