The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is expected to finalize its Section 1033 regulation on open banking this fall, and financial institutions are weighing in on the standardization. 

As FIs give their thoughts on the regulation, it’s worth noting that they won’t know the official deadlines and requirements of Section 1033 until the final rule is issued, John Pitts, global head of policy at fintech Plaid, told Bank Automation News. 

For more on open banking, register for the upcoming complimentary webinar presented by Bank Automation News: “The future of open banking: Payments meet data,” on Tuesday, Sept. 17 at 11 a.m. ET. Register for the webinar here.  

Nevertheless, industry leaders are discussing and preparing for open banking implementation and regulation. Here is a look at what they are saying: 

Citizens Bank: “We’ve been well ahead of industry regulation,” Michael Ruttledge, chief information officer and head of technology services, told BAN. “We started on this journey to adopt FDX, open banking, open API specs about two years ago.” 

In the last year, the bank has been onboarding the different vendors that its customers choose to use, including Plaid, Yodlee, Intuit and more, he said. 

“We’re ready,” Ruttledge said. “Until we see the final, final wording on the regulation there may need to be some tweaks, but I don’t imagine it’s going to be significant.” 

Mastercard: “I believe in innovation,” Jess Turner, executive vice president of global banking and API, said at Fintech South 2024 in Atlanta on Aug. 28. “What we want to be careful of is, we don’t want to have too much regulation where it stifles innovation.” 

Plaid: Many financial institutions “have asked us how they can best prepare for the proposed Section 1033 requirements without creating new teams or business units,” Pitts said.  

To help FIs prepare, Plaid launched its suite of compliance tools, which allow FIs to transition to API connectivity in a matter of weeks, manage consumer connections in one place and manage third party onboarding, he said. 

“Plaid’s vantage point as a network enables us to make data access faster, safer and more seamless — even as new compliance requirements are introduced,” he said. 

Valley Bank: Valley Bank is ready for open banking whenever the regulation is announced, Russell Barrett, senior executive vice president and chief operating officer, previously told BAN. The bank has been developing API connectivity for nearly six months in anticipation of the regulation.