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Six Months into PSD2 – Confessions of the WSO2 Open Banking Team

It’s been six months since the PSD2 compliance deadline and the dust is settling in. Or is it really? Just like when it started, the post PSD2 landscape is viewed from different angles. It has been called everything from a ticking time bomb to a slow burn to a never ending honeymoon period. We think the biggest surprise was that everyone thought that January 13 was the end. It wasn’t, it was the beginning.

When we created WSO2 Open Banking, we knew customer needs would be diverse and every technology experience we deliver would be unique. Turns out we were right. Our journey with WSO2 Open Banking has unraveled some interesting experiences while working with different stakeholders in this compliance ecosystem. Here’s what we learned.

Confession #1: (Almost) Everyone was late to the party

Everyone (including us) started counting down to PSD2 from 6 months to 3 months to 1 month. But the reality was, January 13 was just the date when PSD2 was implemented by the EU parliament as a European-wide regulation.

Several regions across Europe chose to deal with imposing PSD2 in their own way. We’ve been tracking the country-specific deadlines quite closely and about 46% are yet to set an official deadline for compliance. We believe that the final date for compliance will be when the Regulatory Technical Standards (RTS) come into effect in September 2019. That’s good news for us because there’s still a large viable market for compliance technology! 😉

Confession #2: Compliance confusion did not discriminate

Over the past several months, we’ve worked with many banks of different sizes across Europe and they all had similar questions:

This led us to believe that banks, regardless of size, require a lot of guidance in the compliance process. It’s a good thing we have a team of experts to do just that!

Confession #3: They came, they saw, they vanished

When PSD2 first started gaining traction in 2016, the knee-jerk reaction of every API management and integration vendor was “this is a goldmine of opportunity we cannot miss”. So they went head on into the market with an existing product. Come 2018 when the need for compliance technology has evolved, these “first mover” technology vendors have gone quiet.

It remains uncertain whether it was the lack of a well thought out strategy to keep consistent market demand, fintech domination, or not giving the compliance market the attention it deserved. One thing is for sure, this is a highly competitive market for technology vendors like us. But no complaints, we love a challenge and are pretty good at winning them!

Confession #4: API standards (and the organizations writing them) are a solution providers BEST friends

A lot of shade gets thrown at not having a common API standard across Europe (version 1.1 of the Berlin Group API specification is yet to come, we’ve got our eyes peeled for that). However, Open Banking UK has got this in the bag by having a comprehensive API specification that WSO2 Open Banking supports.

When we first started out, these standards really helped set the base for building our solution. Our development team continues to spend a good couple of hours every week identifying latest improvements in the specifications and contributing to their development by participating in working groups.

Confession #5: Compliance is not a back breaker…it just needs a well thought out strategy

A lot of banks think of compliance as a major headache and seek a “quick fix” to compliance just so they can tick off the checkbox. The reality is, quick fixes can do more damage than good. PSD2 compliance is a big deal and if you go into it without a strategy, that’s cause for alarm. Even if you don’t have a dedicated open banking or compliance team you can still get the job done.

You just need to rally the right members, set your goals for compliance and figure out what you need from a technology vendor. Then you need to pick the technology that gives you value for money and won’t take eons to work with your systems and deliver compliance. It’s a matter of working closely with a solution provider towards a common goal.

Confession #6: Do your research or go home – The learning never stops

There is a minimum of 3 articles written a week on open banking. Everything from thought leadership material, opinion pieces (like this one), and publications from standards continue to explore and discuss this ecosystem. And what we learn from our conversation with customers is an invaluable source of research to keep abreast of where the market is heading. We treat each of these as a unique source of intelligence and they continue to nurture our product management, sales, and marketing strategies. It’s the only way to survive in an ecosystem as dynamic as this one.

It’s been a great ride so far and we can’t wait to see what comes up next! No doubt there will be plenty more surprises and exciting developments to look forward to!

The WSO2 Open Banking Team

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