When people search for open banking companies, they're usually looking for one of two things: a clear definition of who these companies are, or a concrete list they can use to evaluate and choose a partner. This guide covers both.
What Are Open Banking Companies?
Open banking companies are businesses that provide technology and services so that other companies (fintechs, lenders, accounting software, neobanks) can securely access bank account data and/or initiate payments on behalf of users. They sit between banks and the applications you use every day—budgeting apps, lending platforms, payment tools—and make it possible to "connect your bank" without sharing your password with a third party.
In practice, the term is used alongside open banking providers, API aggregators, and open banking platforms. They often refer to the same types of companies: those offering APIs for account information (balances, transactions), payment initiation (pay-by-bank), and sometimes identity or income verification.
What Do Open Banking Companies Do?
Open banking companies typically offer some or all of the following:
- Account aggregation (AIS) — Read-only access to account balances, transactions, and holdings so apps can show a unified view of a user's finances.
- Payment initiation (PIS) — Let users pay directly from their bank account (pay-by-bank) instead of using a card or manual transfer.
- Identity and income verification — Use bank data to verify identity or income for lending, onboarding, or compliance.
- Data enrichment — Categorize transactions, calculate insights, or normalize data across different banks and countries.
They do this by connecting to banks either via official banking APIs (where regulation requires it, e.g. PSD2 in Europe, Section 1033 in the US) or through licensed aggregator networks that maintain many bank connections behind a single API.
Leading Open Banking Companies by Region
Below is a snapshot of well-known open banking companies by focus region. Use it as a starting list; the right choice depends on your geography, use case, and technical needs.
United States & North America
- Plaid — Dominant in the US for account linking and data; used by thousands of apps. Strong in lending, fintech, and consumer apps.
- MX — Focus on data enhancement and financial wellness; widely used by credit unions and banks as well as fintechs.
- Finicity (Mastercard) — Enterprise-focused; powers verification and open banking for many large financial institutions and lenders.
- Flinks — Strong in North America (US and Canada) for account and identity solutions.
- Yodlee (Envestnet) — Long-established aggregation and analytics platform used by banks and fintechs.
UK & Europe
- TrueLayer — UK and European specialist; account data and payment initiation with strong developer experience.
- Tink (Visa) — Pan-European coverage; account aggregation, payment initiation, and data services across many countries.
- Banked — Pay-by-bank and open banking payments across the UK and Europe.
- Budget Insight — Broad European coverage; used by banks, insurers, and fintechs.
- Equens Worldline — Large-scale open banking in Europe (e.g. 2,800+ banks in 16 countries).
- Fintecture — Open banking payments and data in France and beyond.
- enable:Banking — Wide European coverage with a technical, API-first approach.
- Salt Edge — Global coverage with a strong European base.
Latin America
- Belvo — Leading open finance platform in Mexico, Colombia, and Brazil; account data and payments.
- Celcoin — Brazil-focused open banking and payments.
- Floid — Latin America and US; account and payment solutions.
Asia–Pacific
- Basiq — Australia; account aggregation and open banking.
- Akahu — New Zealand; bank accounts, investments, and KiwiSaver.
- Finverse — APAC (Hong Kong, Singapore, Philippines, Indonesia, etc.); bank connectivity across the region.
- Brankas — Southeast Asia; open banking APIs.
This list is a subset of the open banking companies available today. For a searchable directory with bank coverage, developer portals, and regional filters, see the Open Banking Tracker provider directory, which compares 50+ companies in one place.
How to Compare Open Banking Companies
When comparing open banking companies, focus on these dimensions:
- Geography — Which countries and banks do they support? Ensure they cover your users' markets.
- Use case — Do you need only account data, or also payments or verification? Not every company offers everything.
- Regulation — Are they licensed or accredited in your jurisdiction (e.g. PSD2/PSD3, FCA, FDX, CDR)?
- Pricing — Per connection, per API call, per monthly active user, or enterprise contract. Model total cost at your expected scale.
- Developer experience — Quality of docs, SDKs, sandboxes, and support. This speeds up integration and maintenance.
- Uptime and reliability — SLAs, status pages, and how they handle bank or network outages.
A detailed comparison table and selection guide is available on the Open Banking Providers page, including bank counts, country coverage, and links to each company's developer portal.
Open Banking Companies vs. Banks
Banks hold your money and provide core banking services; many now expose APIs as required by regulation (e.g. PSD2, 1033). Open banking companies (aggregators/platforms) connect to many banks and expose a single, unified API to apps. So an app integrates once with Plaid or TrueLayer and can reach thousands of banks, instead of integrating with each bank separately.
Both are part of the same ecosystem: banks provide the APIs; open banking companies make them easier and faster to use at scale.
Are Open Banking Companies Regulated?
Yes. In most jurisdictions, open banking companies that access account data or initiate payments on behalf of users are subject to financial regulation. In the EU/EEA they are typically licensed as payment institutions or similar (e.g. AISP/PISP under PSD2). In the UK they are regulated by the FCA. In the US, Section 1033 and state/federal rules apply; FDX and similar standards are increasingly relevant. When you evaluate a company, check their regulatory status in the regions where you operate.
Summary
Open banking companies are the technology providers that enable secure, API-based access to bank data and payments. They range from US-focused leaders like Plaid and MX to European specialists like TrueLayer and Tink, and regional players like Belvo (LATAM) and Basiq (Australia). Choosing the right one depends on your geography, use case, compliance needs, and technical preferences. Use a structured comparison—by region, use case, and the criteria above—and leverage directories like the Open Banking Tracker to see bank coverage and links to each company in one place.
Related Resources
Open Banking Companies FAQ
Open banking companies are businesses that provide technology and services so that other companies (fintechs, lenders, accounting software, neobanks) can securely access bank account data and/or initiate payments on behalf of users. They sit between banks and the applications you use—budgeting apps, lending platforms, payment tools—and are often called open banking providers, API aggregators, or open banking platforms.