Treasurer Scott Morrison has announced the creation of an independent review into a potential open banking regime, led by King & Wood Mallesons partner Scott Farrell.
Mr Farrell, who is a member of the government’s Fintech Advisory Group, will be supported by Treasury officials as he undertakes the review, with a final report due by the end of 2017.
Treasury plans to make an issues paper available shortly for interested parties to provide input into the review.
The review is part of the government’s proposed Banking Executive Accountability Regime (BEAR) announced in the federal budget in May and opened for consultation last week.
“Our moves to introduce an open banking regime in Australia are part of our comprehensive reforms to financial services, driven to empower consumers,” Mr Morrison said.
“The Turnbull government is committed to opening the door to new banking entrants and new financial products and services.”
A research paper released by the SWIFT Institute noted the major banks have two significant competitive advantages over fintech companies or start-ups: familiarity with regulation and consumer trust.
The paper, titled The API Economy and Digital Transformation in Financial Services: The Case of Open Banking, said open APIs could “lead to an entirely new way of doing business and competing in the marketplace”.
