ISCOVER
Open Banking is finally delivering real, measurable value, but to reach its full potential, industry, regulators, and government need to act faster and smarter, says NextGen CEO Brett Stanford
Open Banking in Australia is no longer just a concept. I think we can now comfortably say it has shaken off the “emergent” and “nascent” technology tags that clung to it for so long, and we’re very much seeing it in action. It’s not perfect, but it is delivering significant value.
A common criticism is that progress has felt slow. I heard one institutional leader recently liken it to “waiting for Godot.” But there is real momentum and clear measures of success.
Consider just a few of the outcomes:
● Open Banking API-based data sharing has more than doubled year-on-year, with industry-wide usage now at 1.9 billion API calls per annum.
● Consumers using budgeting apps are saving an average of $330 per month.
● Consumers can now share a full financial picture with trusted advisers, such as mortgage brokers, in around seven minutes, enabling faster and more informed advice.
● Document handling times in home loan applications have dropped dramatically, removing a significant burden from consumers and brokers alike.
These aren’t hypotheticals. They’re real, tangible outcomes for consumers, brokers, and lenders, all enabled by Open Banking.
Mortgage brokers are a clear and current proof point that Open Banking works. They’re now securely using real-time data sharing to replace outdated, risky processes like screen scraping. This isn’t just speeding up applications, it’s also building deeper trust with clients.
That said, there are still obstacles standing in the way of Open Banking’s full potential.
The most persistent issue? Failed consent authorisations when consumers attempt to connect their bank accounts.
Despite great strides in simplifying the consent process, system-level failures at some data holders mean the process can still have adverse impacts on the consumer experience.
Fortunately, many use cases continue to thrive despite these issues. But when consent fails, it creates a poor experience and risks undermining trust in the system.
The continued use of screen scraping, despite its security risks, is a symptom of this. If consumers can't consistently connect via Open Banking, they and their advisers will revert to what’s available.
One contributing factor is that Open Banking is still too often viewed as a compliance obligation, rather than the productivity engine it was meant to be.
It still lacks the spotlight that, in my opinion, it deserves.
We believe there is a clear role for the government in highlighting the opportunity it represents.
For example, politicians recently spent weeks debating a $275 annual energy rebate, but all the while some consumers are saving 10–15 times that amount through Open Banking-enabled tools. Despite this, there is just nowhere near the same government focus.
To accelerate progress, we believe several things must happen:
1. Improved consent authorisation infrastructure
Banks and other data holders must deliver consent authorisation infrastructure with the same reliability as their core digital banking services.
2. Regulators need sharper teeth
Today’s challenging breach reporting process and relatively small fines aren’t enough to drive meaningful change.
Europe’s PSD2 framework demonstrates what’s possible: binding technical standards, enforceable service benchmarks, and penalties that get Board-level attention. We need similar mechanisms here.
3. Government must continue pushing forward
With Action Initiation laws passed and the Data Standards Body now overseeing Digital ID, the foundations are in place for expanded use cases. Government could also help close the loop by declaring a clear intent to ban screen scraping.
With multi-factor authentication increasingly common on banking platforms, screen scraping is already getting harder. But that’s not enough. It needs to be phased out with intent.
4. A mindset shift across the industry
Open Banking is not just another compliance project, it’s a platform for innovation, security, and efficiency.
At NextGen and Frollo, we remain deeply committed to helping brokers and credit teams reduce friction, whether through, for example, ID verification, document collection and execution, or data sharing.
We believe Open Banking is the most powerful enabler of seamless data collection in financial services today.
If we keep working together, the benefits will continue to compound for all stakeholders.
You can find out more about where Australia is in the open banking journey in Frollo’s State of Open Banking Report 2025.
Brett Stanford is the CEO of technology solutions provider NextGen - the company behind mortgage lodgement platform ApplyOnline.
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