Intelliflo is to follow in the footsteps of Moneyinfo and Moneyhub as it receives authorisation from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) for an open banking license.
With the registration approval from the FCA, Intelliflo is now an account information service provider (AISP) under PSR 2017 which allows it to aggregate information from client’s bank accounts.
This capability, available via the Personal Finance Portal (PFP), enables advisers’ clients to review the daily balances on their bank and other accounts, providing a holistic overview of their finances.
The back-office software provider said it already has an integration with American software company Yodlee, providing client data via screen scraping.
Risks and opportunities in open banking
CWC Research founder Clive Waller pointed to Moneyinfo as one of the first in the industry to use technology to “scrape” bank details. Moneyhub is also involved in open banking.
Waller said he did not personally like the idea of passing banking data on to a third party, but also reckoned open banking would be a huge opportunity for the advice and investment industry.
“A personal view is that AI/machine learning applied to bank spending data would be a fabulous way for an individual to self risk-rate. What you actually spend over a few years tells you much more about real behaviour than any psychometric or behavioural test.
‘A more holistic view for the adviser’
In a press release, Intelliflo said the registration means it can expand use of open application programming interface (APIs) that enable third-party developers to build applications which deliver enhanced connectivity for advisers’ clients to a broad range of financial products and services.
Intelliflo’s founder and executive chairman Nick Eatock said: “Being able to integrate bank account information into PFP via open banking means our adviser customers will be in a position to offer their clients a full overview – and full control – of their finances.
“We firmly believe that this service represents a step forward in the way that UK investors are able to access and interact with their finances, better enabling them to control their outgoings and savings from one central hub.
“Crucially, it also enables a more holistic view for the adviser in terms of the FCA’s know your customer (KYC), which helps advisers to deliver good advice outcomes. It is also a significant step forward in helping support the ongoing suitability requirements of Mifid II.”
