Open banking a risk, and opportunity for big banks

Open banking, a system that allows individuals and businesses to securely share their financial data across lenders, is being implemented in Canada, and experts believe it could both pose a risk and an opportunity for the big banks. Mark Schofield, a managing director at Boston Consulting Group, explained that open banking enables people to have a complete picture of their financial situation by consolidating data from multiple institutions.

This could help Canadians with accounts at different financial firms see their entire financial picture on one dashboard.

While open banking aims to drive competition in the sector by making it easier to switch lenders, John Aiken, an analyst at Jefferies, stated that big banks are well-positioned to navigate the changes. He noted that the implementation of open banking legislation in the 2024 federal budget could cost about $457.7 million over a decade but generate $13.2 billion in benefits to consumers and businesses. However, Aiken also cautioned that the cost of implementing open banking could become disruptive over the long term.

On the upside, Aiken believes that banks could gain access to information about customers' investments held at other financial institutions, which they could use to attract those customers to their own services. Henry Kim, a professor at York University, pointed out that Canada’s banking system is effectively an oligopoly, giving large banks significant power to adjust and potentially buy out or replicate successful fintechs.

While the earliest consumers may not have access to open banking tools until late 2027, Steve Boms, executive director of the Financial Data and Technology Association, believes that the industry will experience positive changes once the ecosystem figures out how to utilize the new technologies. Boms added that larger banks with resources to invest in technology and marketing could potentially benefit from consumer-driven banking changes.