60 seconds with Paul Meadowcroft, Chief Product Officer, Konsentus

Konsentus’s Chief Product Officer, Paul Meadowcroft joins the speaking faculty for Open Banking Expo Europe on 4 October 2019. He joins the morning Panel Debate session to explore “PSD2 Open Banking API standards” – can Open Banking ever really take off with more than one standard?

Here, we get a 60 second insight into Paul’s role, what he thinks are the biggest challenges ahead of the PSD2 deadline and  and

Q: Explain what you do in less than 50 words

Konsentus is the only SaaS based API solution providing Financial Institutions with real-time Third-Party Provider (TPP) Identity & Regulatory checking services.  Quickly and easily deployed, the solution helps Financial Institutions ensure customer data is not put at risk when giving TPPs access to account or payment initiation services.

Q: Why did you choose to join the panel debate on “PSD2 Open Banking API standards”at Open Banking Expo Europe?

I joined the panel debate as Konsentus offers a common identity and regulatory checking service that supports all open banking API schemes. Our solution can help ASPSPs with their risk management regardless of the schema they use.  We aim to enable the PSD2 open banking ecosystem to operate in a secure and trustworthy way.

Q: What are the biggest challenges the financial services industry faces in meeting the PSD2 deadline on
14 September?

The biggest challenge the industry faces in meeting the PSD2 deadline is the uncertainty. To be ready for 14^th September, ASPSPs and TPPs need to have been in live testing since 14^thJune, many of whom have not been.  Our solution is quick and easy to deploy, and we look forward to working with ASPSPs across Europe to help them meet this deadline. 

Q: What can the audience expect to learn and hear about during your session?

The need for real-time identity and regulatory checking of TPPs to ensure ASPSPs don’t initiate payments or provide customer data to unregulated third parties.

Q: What do you think the financial services industry will look like in 10 years’ time as a result of Open Banking?      Will much have changed?

In ten years, the industry will not be talking about Open Banking because it will have become part of peoples’ normal day to day activities.  It will be more about the innovative applications being offered by Financial Institutions and new Fin Tech entrants.  Rather than taking about the enabling technology we’ll be talking about the latest payment services apps and what we can do with them.

Q: What innovation do you see in Open Banking in the next 12 months?

Over the next 12 months we expect to see more interesting use being made of account information and integrated payment services. Financial services will be integrated into the every-day life of users enabling them to have relevant and timely interactions with improved financial outcomes.  Solutions that remove complexity, are reliable and help manage risk will enable innovation to take place.