Plaid and Fiserv establish data-sharing agreement

Ellie Duncan
13 Oct 2023

US-based Fiserv and data network Plaid have established an agreement to enable data sharing through APIs, so that consumers and financial institutions can access their financial information.

Through the agreement, individuals who are served by the nearly 3,000 banks and credit unions hosted by Fiserv will have “credential-less” API-based connectivity to more than 8,000 applications and services on the Plaid network via ‘AllData Connect’ from Fiserv.

US consumers will be able to share their financial information with third-party apps and services of their choosing.

Matt Wilcox, president of digital payments at Fiserv, said: “Our partnership with Plaid allows banks and credit unions to empower consumers to access their financial information beyond the financial institution, while maintaining their trusted role at the centre of people’s financial lives.”

He added: “By facilitating access to a broad range of capabilities and experiences through third-party apps and services we are charting a course towards an Open Finance ecosystem that prioritizes data privacy, consumer access, and choice.”

“Financial institutions regardless of size, location, or capital should be able to power these digital experiences for their consumers via APIs,” said Aly Yarris, financial access partnerships at Plaid.

Fiserv and Plaid have also committed to advancing “secure and transparent” data sharing in line with anticipated regulatory guidance, such as that outlined by Dodd Frank 1033.

Don Cardinal, managing director of non-profit industry standards body FDX, added: “Fiserv and Plaid are leaders in Open Finance, operating with a commitment to standardized data sharing for the benefit of financial institutions, fintechs and consumers.”

He called the formalisation of Plaid and Fiserv’s relationship “a leap forward” for direct data sharing.

At the start of the year, Plaid wrote to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in the US, in response to its request for stakeholder feedback on personal financial data rights rulemaking.