Nesta Challenges and Open Banking UK have partnered to launch a £1.5 million prize fund encouraging fintech innovators to create solutions which help people make more of their money, according to BDaily News.
Open Up Challenge 2020 is calling for fintech innovators to create Open Banking enabled solutions which help consumers across the UK.
Research conducted to mark the launch found that millions of people across the country are currently struggling to stay on top of their finances. One in three (29%) say that they regularly run out of money each month – equating to around 15.2 million people.
The survey also found that half (52%) want to feel more in control of their finances and nearly four in ten (37%) know they could get a better deal for their financial products but don’t know where to start.
Open Banking allows people to get personalised, tailored information to help them manage their money by giving consent for regulated companies to analyse their bank data. Products and services powered by Open Banking are beginning to show how people can revolutionise their finances through better budgeting, managing debt, automating savings, and making it easier to compare products. Half (48%) of people say they would like new tools and apps to help them manage their money.
The study also suggests that these products and services could be particularly helpful for the most vulnerable in society or those who are not financially resilient. Nearly nine in ten (86%) people who have already used a product enabled by Open Banking think it would help people who are financially vulnerable to manage their money, and almost eight in ten (77%) believe that those struggling financially or on lower incomes need to be better supported to make more of their money.
There is clearly an appetite among lower income households for this type of support, with over a third (35%) of those earning GBP 20,000 or less saying they would use an app that helped them manage their money. The areas that lower earners are most likely to want help with are: saving money on bills (25%), saving more money automatically (21%) and helping identify savings on lifestyle costs (17%).
Open Up 2020 aims to accelerate innovation in this space by offering financial prizes and expert support to the most impactful solutions which use Open Banking data to help people – particularly those struggling financially – to make more of their money. It follows the Open Up Challenge 2018 which focused on improving the financial products and services available for small and medium-sized businesses.
Banking 4.0 – „how was the experience for you”
„So many people are coming here to Bucharest, people that I see and interact on linkedin and now I get the change to meet them in person. It was like being to the Football World Cup but this was the World Cup on linkedin in payments and open banking.”
Many more interesting quotes in the video below:
