This January will witness the opening of the data mines financial institutions in the UK and the EU have long held dearly to wider access of third-party providers with the aim of expanding competition and thereby more consumer choice in services and products. But have consumers been prepared to take advantage of this ‘undiscovered country”?
Interestingly a poll of over 2,000 Brits conducted by YouGov on behalf of consumer and business insights venture, Equifax, reveals that 90% have not heard of the Open Banking initiative, with 45% adding that they are not likely to use it when it becomes available.
When asked about sharing personal data through Open Banking, 60% would not consent to this, with concerns including security and that third parties would be able to contact them.
Does this bode well though from an adoption perspective? After all, as consumers we always crave choice, competitive rates and a good deal. However, when it comes to financial services, it seems we’re not willing to take the risk with new FinTech’s or digital challengers – unless of course you happen to be a young millennial or gen-Z’er.
Mercator Advisory Service concurs with the assessment in this article that the lowering of barriers delivering analysis and insights based on individual consumer data with the consumer’s permission will indeed trigger a new round of customer centric innovation and personalized services. It remains to be seen how long the majority of these consumers will take in trusting the freer exchange of their own personal data to seed this financial data based renaissance.
Overview by Joseph Walent, Associate Director, Customer Interactions Advisory Service at Mercator Advisory Group
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