What’s Next for Open Banking: Reflections from the Open Banking Expo

‍“What struck me most at the Open Banking Expo was the sense that open banking is no longer an experiment, it’s a proven model delivering billions in value,” writes Adam Ball, Chief Commercial Officer at Prommt

At this year’s Open Banking Expo, the energy in the room was unmistakable: open banking payments have gained strong momentum across many sectors. What began as a regulatory push to increase competition and transparency in financial services has evolved into a global movement reshaping how businesses and consumers interact with money.

The conference took place from 21-22 October 2025 at the Business Design Centre in London. Three themes stood out to me: the increasing adoption of Pay by Bank across diverse sectors, the proven impact of open banking in high‑value transactions, and the growing momentum toward a broader open finance ecosystem. Together, these developments point to a future where payments and financial services are more seamless, secure, and customer‑centric than ever before.

Pay by Bank: From Niche to Mainstream

One of the most striking takeaways from the Expo was the breadth of industries now embracing Pay by Bank. I see this rising trend in my current role: Once considered an alternative to card payments, Pay by Bank is now speeding up bank payments and providing operational improvement across automotive, hospitality, hardware and builders’ merchants, luxury retail, insurance, and sports hospitality.

The appeal is clear: Pay by Bank offers a fast, secure, and low‑cost alternative to traditional card payments. For businesses, it reduces transaction fees and fraud risk, and enables bank transfers to be more easily tracked and reconciled. For customers, it provides a frictionless experience that feels intuitive and trustworthy.

The automotive sector, in particular, has become a showcase for what’s possible. A leading UK pre‑owned prestige car retailer implemented Pay by Bank in just one month, setting a £500 threshold for card payments and routing higher‑value transactions over bank rails. The results were staggering: £33 million collected in the first month alone, with steady growth ever since.

Hospitality, one of our largest sectors, is where we are seeing growth. More than 100 clients now use Pay by Bank for high‑value events such as weddings and corporate functions. The average transaction value is nearly £5,000, with standout examples including a €67,787 golf club membership and a £33,511 booking at a London five‑star hotel. The trend is clear: for high‑value, domestic transactions, Pay by Bank is becoming the preferred choice. For now, routine room bookings remain card‑dominated due to international guest profiles,

Luxury retail is following suit. We know that card payments will continue to be important even for six-figure watch and jewellery sales to fine wine boutiques and consumer electronics retailers, but several businesses are successfully converting large proportions of their sales to Pay by Bank and benefiting from reduced costs, a seamless customer experience, and reduced chargeback risk.

These examples underscore a broader story: Open banking is not just about payment mandates and compliance. It’s creating tangible value across multiple industries.

The Bigger Picture: Open Finance on the Horizon

While open banking has already transformed payments, the Expo made it clear that we are only scratching the surface. The next frontier is open finance, a model where consumers can securely share not just their banking data, but also information from pensions, insurance, mortgages, and investments.

Imagine a world where a consumer’s financial life is fully connected: where budgeting apps can integrate pension forecasts, where insurers can tailor policies based on real‑time spending patterns, and where mortgage approvals are instant because lenders have verified income and affordability directly from bank data.

This vision is just a few years away. Regulators across Europe and beyond are already laying the groundwork. The UK’s Smart Data initiative and the EU’s PSD3 proposals are designed to expand the principles of open banking into a broader open finance framework. The Expo sessions highlighted how industry collaboration will be critical to making this transition work.

Trends to Watch in the Next Five Years

Based on the discussions at the Expo and the momentum we’re seeing in the market, here are three trends I believe will define the next phase of open finance:

1. Mainstreaming. As adoption grows across sectors, Pay by Bank will be regarded as a standard payment option. Without ever really having an awareness of what open banking is, they will accept and expect it just as they have with previous leaps forward, such as faster payments or contactless.
2. Recurring Payments. The implementation of new recurring payments across open banking in 2026 is a highly anticipated development, with significant demand across our Insurance and Investments client base. Commercial Variable Recurring Payments will give us a viable replacement for older tools such as Direct Debit, and give far more control to the customer, such as the ability to set limits and manage mandates in their banking apps.
3. Expansion Beyond Payments. Open finance will extend the benefits of data‑driven innovation to areas like lending, insurance, and wealth management. Expect to see new products that are hyper‑personalised, leveraging real‑time financial data to deliver better outcomes for consumers. Over the next five years, we’ll see a shift in expectations: people will demand transparency, portability, and choice in how their financial data is used. Businesses that embrace this ethos will win trust and loyalty.

A Personal Reflection

What struck me most at the Open Banking Expo was the sense that open banking is no longer an experiment, it’s a proven model delivering billions in value. Our early adopters in Automotive, Building Supplies, and other sectors have proven its effectiveness. The challenge now is to scale responsibly, ensuring that innovation is matched by security, inclusivity, and consumer trust.

As someone deeply engaged in this space, I left the Expo convinced that the next five years will be transformative. Open finance will not only redefine how payments are made, but also how financial services are designed, delivered, and experienced. For businesses, the opportunity is immense. For consumers, the promise is empowerment.

The journey is just beginning, but the direction is clear: open finance is the future, and it’s arriving faster than many expect.

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About the author

Adam Ball is Chief Commercial Officer at Prommt. With a passion for payment technology and fintech development, Adam has worked for more than 20 years in the UK payment industry. Prior to joining Prommt, he worked at Vocalink, where he led mobile payments delivering the Paym mobile bank-to-bank payment system, and extending the Faster Payments ecosystem to challenger banks.

About Prommt

Prommt is the leading advanced payment link platform, trusted by world-leading brands and enterprise–grade businesses across hospitality, luxury retail, automotive, builders' merchants, and professional services. With broad integrations to the world’s leading payment gateways and seamless connections to industry-leading ERPs such as Oracle OPERA PMS, Prommt enables merchants to securely collect remote payments while flexibly offering both card and open banking payment options. This drives significant savings on high-value transactions, reduces fraud and chargebacks, and delivers a smooth, fully branded payment experience. By streamlining the remote payment process, Prommt helps businesses save time, reduce costs, improve security, and elevate the customer payment journey. For further information, please visit https://www.prommt.com/

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