Truist and Plaid Join Forces to Expand Open Banking Capabilities
Truist Bank, headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, has announced its strategic partnership with data aggregator Plaid to boost its open banking capabilities. The collaboration comes in anticipation of the forthcoming rulemaking by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). Truist’s primary aim with this partnership is to enhance its clients’ financial control and insights through cooperative data sharing.
“By delivering modern, integrated digital banking through open banking, we’re able to deepen relationships and build trust,” expressed Sherry Graziano, Truist’s head of digital client experience and marketing. The bank’s commitment to complying with all applicable laws, rules, and regulations governing personal financial data remains unwavering as it monitors and adapts to evolving regulatory guidance and developments.
Open Banking and the Regulatory Landscape
Open banking, a concept that allows consumers to share their banking, transaction, and financial data with third-party providers like fintechs through standardized application programming interfaces (APIs), is currently awaiting regulatory clarity from the CFPB. The bureau is preparing a second iteration of an open banking rule fashioned after Section 1033 of the Dodd-Frank Consumer Protection Act.
The final open banking rule, which was established in October 2024 under the Biden administration, was immediately challenged by a consortium of banks that argued the agency had overstepped its authority. As a result, a judge put a hold on the Biden-era rule while the CFPB deliberated on whether to modify the original rule. Ultimately, the CFPB decided to revoke and reissue an interim rule in late 2025. However, the timeline for the publication of the secondary rule remains unknown.
The Partnership Involves Joint Product Upgrades
The partnership between Truist and Plaid also includes joint product enhancements aimed at improving data quality and helping clients counter fraud. Both companies will share data and risk indicators sourced from their existing networks to enhance security. They will employ an FDX-aligned API that replaces credential sharing for customers managing third-party connections.
“Together, the companies are expanding the capabilities of API connectivity and advancing data-driven innovation, including shared intelligence, to provide clients with secure and convenient access to their accounts,” stated Christy Sunquist, head of open finance at Plaid.
Through the collaboration with Plaid, Truist customers now have tokenized access to a platform that allows them to control which applications can access their financial data, and for what purposes, without sharing usernames or passwords.
Real-World Demand Drives Open Banking
Eyal Sivan, general manager for North America at Ozone API and a board member at the Financial Data Exchange (FDX), sees the new open banking partnership announcement as a positive sign, despite the uncertainty surrounding Section 1033 rulemaking.
“This in and of itself is a strong signal that real-world demand continues to be a strong driver in the U.S. market,” Sivan told American Banker.
According to Sivan, Truist and Plaid are likely cognizant of the impending open banking rule changes. However, he believes that the upcoming notice of proposed rulemaking from the CFPB is not the primary driver for the partnership announcement. Instead, the companies’ focus remains on providing customers with better bank connectivity that is more reliable, more secure, and more convenient. “Being an industry standard, FDX lowers the cost to do so; getting ahead of Section 1033 is a bonus,” he added.
As Truist and Plaid continue to forge ahead with their open banking initiatives, the industry will keep a keen eye on the CFPB’s next steps regarding open banking regulations.
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