Inside Open Banking’s Rule, Reversal, and Reset

Fintech Takes

Welcome back to the Fintech Takes podcast. I’m Alex Johnson, joined by Dan Murphy — Founder of Sunset Park Advisors and former CFPB official who helped craft the agency’s open banking rule (finalized last October).

Our plan is simple: for listeners less steeped in the regulatory process, we’ll walk through how the rule took shape, assess where things stand today, and focus on what comes next (and what should come next, realistic or not.)

Granted, “today” remains a moving target. Just 20 minutes before we hit record, breaking news dropped that changed the open banking conversation yet again.

Highlights include:

• The unusual bipartisan and cross-industry consensus (banks and fintechs alike) that pushed the rule across the finish line (and why that consensus collapsed after October 2024)

• Why JPMorgan’s aggressive API fee move rolled out while the no-fee rule was technically still in effect) may have backfired by uniting fintechs, crypto firms, merchants, and even regulators against it

• The hardest unresolved questions: whether banks can charge for data access, how liability is allocated when things go wrong, how far the rule should extend beyond checking and credit cards, and what counts as legitimate secondary data use.

If you care about the future of data portability, the balance of power between banks and fintechs, or just want a front-row seat to the regulatory drama reshaping U.S. finance in real time, this is the episode you don’t want to miss.

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