In 2022, the Bank of Russia published a concept for the introduction of Open APIs in the financial market. Within its framework, financial organizations will be required to exchange data about themselves and their products according to the Open API standard, transmit information about the client's accounts and products to each other, and initiate payments. At the first stage, data exchange will be mandatory for the largest banks, insurance companies and brokers, and then other categories of financial organizations will connect to the standards. The development and piloting of standards is carried out jointly with market participants on the platform of the FinTech Association, which acts as a center of expertise in Open APIs.
VTB and Alfa-Bank have now begun to implement one of the open banking standards. The pilot participants are building the architecture of the data storage and transmission system to ensure 100% data protection during information exchange. In October, in test mode, focus group participants from the two banks will be able to receive mutual information about their debit accounts and cards, as well as see the history of transactions on them.
Many new services can be created on the basis of Open APIs — from classic payment services to innovative fintech solutions. For banks with a high degree of digitalization, the use of Open APIs will help expand the customer base, increase customer loyalty, and increase the volume of loan refinancing.
"The main benefit of open interfaces in finance will be for consumers. Customers will be able to see all their accounts and products in one banking application, perform transactions between them, keep track of expenses and income, and receive favorable individual offers from banks. This will improve their financial planning and control over their funds – all information will always be "at hand"," said Georgy Gorshkov, Deputy President and Chairman of the VTB Management Board.
"The Open banking concept is now actively developing in the Russian market, and we have a lot to do — including working with leading players and the regulator to develop standards for interaction, data exchange, etc. By working together, leading financial institutions are able to create a seamless user journey for the client, while ensuring his safety at the highest level," said Vadim Kulik, Deputy President and Chairman of the VTB Management Board.
"The availability of solutions that meet Open Banking standards will significantly improve the digital customer experience for retail and corporate clients, as well as support the accelerated implementation of a large number of business cases that require legal unified exchange of personal data, banking secrecy through digital distribution of banking products and services on platforms, access to which was previously difficult," said Damir Battulin, Director of Digital Channels, Senior Vice President of Alfa-Bank.
An important condition for data exchange is obtaining the client's consent. Now the Ministry of Digital Development, with the participation of the Bank of Russia, is working on creating a Platform for Commercial Agreements based on the "Gosuslugi" portal, where clients' consent to exchange their data according to the open interface standard will be stored. The introduction of mandatory use of Open APIs for financial market participants will take place in stages from 2026.