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Open Up 2020

Technology Frontiers
Prize amount: £1500000
30/07/2019 - 14/10/2020
High angle shot of an unrecognizable businessman banking on his mobile phone|Open Banking logo|Open Banking logo|Moneybox logo|Plum logo|Screenshot of the Wagestream app|Chris Michael faces the camera|Christine Foster smiles at the camera|Colm Lyon smiles at the camera|Farhan Lalji faces the camera|Ilse Treurnicht faces the camera|Matthew Upton faces the camera|Shefali Roy smiles at the camera|Susanne Chishti smiles at the camera|Varun Paul smiles at the camera

What was the Open Up 2020 challenge?

Open Up 2020 was a £1.5m prize fund, run by Challenge Works and backed by the Open Banking Implementation Entity, to unlock the power of open banking for UK consumers. The challenge was designed and timed to boost consumer awareness and adoption of open banking-enabled products.

Why did we do this?

Open banking has the potential to transform financial services, opening up the UK banking industry by giving people control over their financial data. This will help consumers to access innovative products tailored to them and ensure that they benefit from the best deals on the market. Since it launched in 2018, open banking technology has opened the door for new fintech innovators to create cutting-edge tools for everything from budgeting, debt management, switching banks, automating savings, and much more. This wave of innovation holds particular promise for financially excluded individuals.

What were we looking for?

We were seeking products and apps that use open banking to help people better manage their money through more transparent, accessible and fair products. This included:

  • personal current account comparison that supports ‘unbundling’ and easy switching to a different account provider
  • helping people use an overdraft provider that is not their bank and avoid expensive, unexpected fees (‘unbundling’ of overdrafts from personal current accounts)
  • automated/’robo’ financial management to help build savings buffers and manage debt
  • widening access to affordable credit including alternative lending options and innovations in credit scoring
  • boosting earnings on savings, including high balance sweeping so people earn interest on their credit balance
  • micro-payments towards savings

Impact of the Challenge

  • 11 out of 15 finalists agreed that the Challenge accelerated the growth of their product
  • 12 out of 15 agreeing that the Challenge increased their number of users
  • Results from the marketing campaign show that over 23,000 leads were created, with 351,000 clicks on the Open Up consumer website and those of the finalists
  • 14 out of 15 finalists agree that the Challenge introduced them to new and useful contacts
  • 14 of 15 finalist teams agreed that the Challenge improved the capabilities of their team and 12 agreed that, as a result of the Challenge, they were able to access support they would not otherwise have been able to

The Open Up Challenge 2020 Report

Running a campaign to drive adoption of open banking in the UK 2020 Report