Open Banking Limited (OBL) is celebrating the eighth anniversary of open banking in the UK, marking the transition of the initiative from a regulatory requirement to a core component of the nation’s financial infrastructure. Since its launch in January 2018, following the implementation of PSD2 and the CMA’s Retail Banking Market Investigation Order, open banking has grown to underpin a significant portion of the UK’s financial activity. According to new figures released by OBL, there are now more than 16.5 million live user connections across the UK. A surge in adoption The data highlights a robust uptake in account-to-account payments, with nearly 33 million open banking payments recorded in November 2025 alone. This growth reflects a shift in consumer and business behaviour towards faster, more secure, and cost-effective payment methods. Beyond transaction volumes, the ecosystem has become a significant economic driver. OBL reports that open banking-enabled solutions have contributed over £4billion to the UK economy and created nearly 5,000 skilled digital jobs since the framework’s inception. From regulation to infrastructure The anniversary comes as the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) recently identified open banking as a key driver for national growth in a letter to the Prime Minister, specifically highlighting its potential to unlock new use cases in SME lending. Henk Van Hulle, CEO of Open Banking Limited, commented on the milestone: “In just eight years, Open Banking Limited has helped build an ecosystem that people and businesses across the UK now use as part of everyday financial life, sometimes without…
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