Business leader Paul LaRusso discusses the history of open banking, benefits of CFPB regulations, lessons from the UK, why big banks need to adapt, and the importance of open banking being a two-way street. He highlights the evolution of open banking in the US, the role of smartphone apps, challenges in data protection, and the empowering mission of Akoya in giving consumers control over their financial information.
Open banking in the US has evolved in a market-driven manner without strict regulations, contrasting with Europe and the UK.
Acoia, led by Paul LaRusso, prioritizes transparency, security, and consumer control in data sharing to create a sustainable financial ecosystem.
Deep dives
The Origins of Open Banking
Open banking emerged as a response to the great financial crisis of 2008. Europe's PSD2 regulation and the UK's CMA order aimed to increase competition and prevent the dominance of big banks. While Europe and the UK enforced regulated open banking, the US witnessed significant open banking adoption without strict regulations, with major banks like JP Morgan Chase moving towards open banking even before the crisis.
US Evolution Towards Open Banking
The US transitioned through three key phases leading to the current partnership period in open banking evolution. The late 90s saw the emergence of OFX standards for data aggregation. The smartphone era from 2007 to 2014 accelerated mobile banking, with a surge in financial apps like Mint and Venmo. By 2015-2016, strains in bank systems due to increased third-party traffic prompted a shift towards consumer data protection and minimizing sharing risks.
Regulatory Landscape and Acoia's Mission
The US open banking scene has been largely market-driven, with some regulatory guidelines from the CFPB in 2017 focusing on consumer benefits. Acoia, led by Paul LaRusso, aims to provide a secure, consumer-centric data access network. Backed by leading industry players, Acoia prioritizes transparency, security, and consumer control in data sharing, contributing to an ecosystem sustainable for all financial players.
Open banking is often cast as an antidote to the dominance of big banks. Given that its origins stem from the Great Financial Crisis of 2008, this perspective is not terribly surprising. But is this characterisation a fair one? Does open banking have to be a threat to big banks, or can it be turned into an opportunity? To answer these questions and more, we turn to Paul LaRusso. Paul is a business leader with over 20 years of experience in mobile financial services and technology. Paul is the CEO of Akoya, a bank-sanctioned data access network that is leading the way in the US open finance sector. Prior to joining Akoya, Paul served as the Head of Open Banking and Connected Banking at JP Morgan Chase, where he held technology leadership positions for almost 15 years. Today as head of Akoya, Paul aims to transform the way people share their data, making it more secure, private, reliable, and transparent. In this episode, Eyal and Paul unpack the history of open banking and the evolution in the market-driven approach that Paul has had the benefit of seeing up close.
Specifically they discuss:
The history of open banking
The benefits of CFPB regulations
What the US can learn from the UK
What the big banks need to know
Why open banking is a two-way street
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