You’ll remember that we went into open banking and how it lets people share their bank account data with approved third parties through secure digital connections. A lender or service can view recent transactions once a customer gives consent. It runs on regulated technology instead of screen scraping, which keeps access controlled.
Open Banking Limited said more than 16 million people in Britain use open banking services. The organisation also reported heavy growth in payment activity during 2025, handling billions of secure API calls each month. Jo Allsop, Director of Lenders at B Corp accredited Zuto car finance, said, “Open banking is a financial model which enables consumers to safely share their banking data with third party providers.”
That system now brings up a new economic case. Two pieces of independent analysis commissioned by Open Banking Limited and conducted by EY attempt to put a figure on what this activity means for the country.
How Much Is Open Banking Worth To The UK?
According to the new economic analysis commissioned by Open Banking Limited and carried out by EY, open banking could unlock up to £43 billion a year for the UK economy at full maturity.
The research says £8.3 billion in cumulative economic benefit has already been delivered under current adoption levels. It estimates that annual economic benefits could reach £7.4 billion within 5 years if adoption continues to grow.
The report describes this as the first comprehensive attempt to quantify the economy wide impact of open banking. It looks at uptake across payments, savings, lending and cloud accounting. The modelling assesses how millions of everyday financial decisions becoming cheaper and faster can lift output across the economy.
Henk Van Hulle, CEO of Open Banking Limited, said, “Open banking has already played a vital role in society with over 17.5 million user connections, and these findings show that there is an even greater opportunity ahead now that open banking has reached a key point of maturity.”
He added, “By helping consumers manage their money better and enabling businesses to operate more efficiently, open banking is already contributing meaningfully to economic growth, a key component of the Government’s wider growth mission.
“As the UK looks to strengthen productivity, competitiveness and innovation across financial services, this analysis underlines the important role open banking can play in supporting those ambitions, while laying the foundations for the next phase of development.”
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Thomas Bull, Head of FinTech Growth at EY, said, “Open banking is already delivering real and substantial value across the UK, with significant further growth potential as adoption continues to scale. It is changing how people and businesses manage everyday financial activity from making and receiving payments, to managing cash flow, reducing administrative burden and making more informed decisions in real time. The report shows that these improvements to routine, everyday interactions are already unlocking meaningful benefits for consumers and businesses alike, and that their impact grows as adoption deepens.
“Looking ahead, continued collaboration between industry, regulators and government will be critical to building on this momentum, scaling the existing ecosystem and supporting the transition towards open finance, enabling broader, fairer access to financial services across the UK.”
Where Does The Growth Come From?
The analysis breaks the £43 billion long term opportunity into practical effects. For small and medium sized enterprises, lower administration costs and automation could generate an estimated £2.3 billion annual GDP uplift within five years. Less time spent on paperwork means more time spent on commercial activity.
For consumers, tools powered by open banking could help people manage money more effectively and access fairer finance. That is estimated to deliver a £2.5 billion annual boost to UK GDP within five years.
The modelling also connects better use of payments and data to increased investment and more productive allocation of capital. Lenders can assess income and spending in real time rather than relying on historic files.
As Allsop put it, “When a lender requires an applicant to complete open banking, this is a secure way for lenders to check their income and expenditure to better understand affordability.”
