Mint, one of the original and most popular PFM apps, is shutting down. This presents a huge opportunity for financial providers.

How can financial institutions and fintechs create engaging PFM tools to fill the void left by Mint — and reach even more consumers? 

What the Shutdown of Mint Means for Financial Providers

Last week, Intuit announced that Mint, one of the original and most popular personal financial management (PFM) apps, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/03/business/mint-app-closing-intuit.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">is shutting down on January 1, 2024</a>. This news has caused an outcry from many Mint users, but it presents a huge opportunity for financial institutions and fintechs.
<blockquote>
Give consumers the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.mx.com/products/financial-wellness/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">financial wellness tools</a>&nbsp;they need and want &mdash; while driving increased engagement, deposits, and satisfaction.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.mx.com/request-demo/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Schedule a demo</a>&nbsp;today to see more.
</blockquote>
<h2>How Mint Works</h2>
Mint allows consumers to connect all of their financial accounts in one place, so they could better track and manage all of their spending and income in one place. Mint also offers a variety of budgeting tools, such as the ability to set monthly budgets, track spending by category, and create financial goals.
<h2>The Reality of a Standalone PFM Tool</h2>
Javelin research shows <a href="https://finance.yahoo.com/news/mints-shutdown-opportunity-banks-190811422.html">only about 6% of consumers use a third party for financial planning</a>, but according to Dylan Lerner, a digital banking analyst at Javelin Strategy &amp; Research, that doesn't mean 94% are using their banks.&nbsp;
The reality is that only a relatively small portion of consumers actually like taking a hands-on approach to managing their finances. According to <a href="https://twitter.com/AlexH_Johnson/status/1676974547592179713" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Fintech Takes Author Alex Johnson</a>, &ldquo;roughly 15% of the population (including most people working in tech) love to do detailed budget categorization and analysis.&rdquo;
Today&rsquo;s dedicated Mint users likely fall into this category of super users &mdash; while a majority of consumers want to improve their finances and make better decisions with their money, but don't want to do the work. Or, at the very least, most consumers don&rsquo;t want yet another app to manage their finances.&nbsp;
In fact, MX <a href="https://www.mx.com/research/financial-wellness-and-todays-money-experience/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">financial wellness research</a> found that 45% of consumers only check their finances through their financial accounts when asked how they currently track and manage their finances. And, nearly 1 in 10 say they don&rsquo;t track their finances at all.&nbsp;
So how can financial institutions and fintechs <a href="https://www.mx.com/blog/four-personal-financial-management-imperatives/">create engaging PFM tools</a> to fill the void left by Mint &mdash; and reach even more consumers?&nbsp;
<h2>Building Consumer Engage(mint)</h2>
Financial institutions and fintechs can benefit from Mint's shutdown in a few ways:
<ol>
<li>Identify and attract new consumers who may be looking for alternative budgeting and financial planning tools. <a href="https://www.mx.com/whitepapers/financial-wellness-for-the-masses/">PFM tools and insights have the potential to become a significant differentiator for the average consumer</a>. More than half of consumers agree they want their financial provider to help them better manage their finances (57%) and <a href="https://www.mx.com/research/what-influences-where-consumers-choose-to-bank/">54% believe financial providers have a responsibility to teach them to be financially strong</a>.&nbsp;</li>
<li>Increase engagement with current consumers by <a href="https://www.mx.com/products/personal-financial-management/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">embedding PFM tools</a> into their everyday finance experience. By placing insights and opportunities in the flow-of-life tasks or habits that consumers have already adopted, financial providers can drive higher engagement.</li>
<li>Build lasting relationships with consumers by making insights predictable and repeatable. Repetition builds habits. By delivering insights this way &mdash; and if the content is obviously and reliably valuable and actionable &mdash; <a href="https://www.mx.com/products/personal-financial-management/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">PFM solutions</a> can create lasting engagement and healthier financial habits. If the insights don&rsquo;t do this, consumers will get in the habit of ignoring instead of engaging.</li>
</ol>
<h2>How MX Can Help&nbsp;</h2>
<h3>See What Tools Your Customers are Using</h3>
Do you know how many users are using Mint or other PFM tools today? MX&rsquo;s <a href="https://www.mx.com/products/data-access/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Data Access Open Finance API</a> allows you to see where users have connected their bank accounts. With our Data Access dashboard, you can easily view and segment customers who have connected to apps like Mint. These audiences can be used in targeted marketing campaigns to raise awareness for your tools and services.&nbsp;
<h3>Deliver Personalized and Proactive Financial Management Tools</h3>
With MX <a href="https://www.mx.com/products/personal-financial-management/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Personal Financial Management</a> and <a href="https://www.mx.com/products/financial-insights/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Financial Insights</a>, you can provide your customers with <a href="https://www.mx.com/use-cases/financial-wellness/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">financial management and planning tools</a> that are embedded into your digital experience. MX enables you to:&nbsp;
<ul>
<li>Deliver personalized insights and recommendations to help consumers better manage spending, create budgets, increase savings, and pay down debt.</li>
<li>Protect, guide, and inform consumers with AI-driven, predictive insights that make it easy for them to take action to reach their financial goals</li>
<li>Enable consumers to connect external accounts in a few simple steps and gain a more complete picture of their finances</li>
<li>Help consumers easily organize, track, and interact with their finances with automated spending categories and enhanced transaction data.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Drive Better Outcomes for Consumers and Your Business</h3>
Financial institutions and fintechs who leverage MX <a href="https://www.mx.com/products/personal-financial-management/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">PFM</a> and <a href="https://www.mx.com/products/financial-insights/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Insights</a> demonstrate proven results, including:&nbsp;
<ul>
<li>Higher consumer engagement: <a href="https://www.mx.com/case-studies/mt-bank-empowers-customers/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">M&amp;T Bank saw consumers log in 50% more often</a> and spend three times longer managing their finances when using MX to better understand where their money flows.</li>
<li>Increased account aggregation: On average, 20% of consumers aggregate external accounts.&nbsp;</li>
<li>Higher account deposits: Mercantile Bank customers who consistently viewed insights <a href="https://www.mx.com/case-studies/mercantile-bank/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">maintained approximately 15% higher deposit balances</a> and opened new deposit accounts at twice the rate of those who did not consistently view insights within their digital banking experience.</li>
<li>Stronger financial outcomes: WaFd Bank saw a <a href="https://www.mx.com/case-studies/wafd-bank/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">45% increase in deposit balances for consumers</a> who leverage MX tools. And, as a result of WaFd Bank&rsquo;s focus on innovation and leveraging data to drive value for consumers, customer satisfaction has soared. Since this journey began, the company&rsquo;s Net Promoter Score has increased exponentially, achieving a current score of 57 &mdash; significantly higher than the industry average.</li>
</ul>
Give consumers the <a href="https://www.mx.com/products/financial-wellness/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">financial wellness tools</a> they need and want &mdash; while driving increased engagement, deposits, and satisfaction. <a href="https://www.mx.com/request-demo/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Schedule a demo</a> today to see more.

The Future of Financial Empower(mint)

The CFPB's NPRM for Section 1033 is an important milestone in ensuring consumers have the right to their financial information. 

Join us on Monday, November 6, for a virtual roundtable discussion to ask questions and share your perspective. 

The CFPB's NPRM for Section 1033 is an important milestone in making sure consumers have the right to access and control their financial information. This will lay the groundwork for the next chapter of fintech innovation. 

U.S. Consumer Financial Data Rights are Almost Here | CFPB Section 1033

At MX, we believe in the power of financial data to unlock new insights and drive better money experiences that benefit companies and consumers alike. An open finance ecosystem &mdash; where everyone can access and act on financial data &mdash;&nbsp;enables smarter, faster, and more reliable money experiences.&nbsp;
However, until now, consumer financial data access and control has primarily been left up to the financial institutions, fintechs, and other third parties involved. MX has been working with our customers, partners and the wider ecosystem to accelerate Open Banking and secure data sharing for the past 5 years. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) <a href="https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/newsroom/cfpb-proposes-rule-to-jumpstart-competition-and-accelerate-shift-to-open-banking/">recently published its long-awaited notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) for personal financial data rights under Dodd-Frank Act Section 1033</a>.&nbsp;
This is an important milestone in making sure consumers have the right to access and control their financial information. We believe that it will lay the groundwork for the United States to move into the next chapter of fintech innovation. A clear, cross-agency regulatory framework will accelerate adoption of Open Finance, improve the money experience, and help drive better financial outcomes for millions of Americans.&nbsp;
<blockquote>
<a href="https://www.mx.com/preview/?collection=events&amp;url=cfpb-rulemaking-roundtable/11062023">Join MX and FS Vector for a virtual roundtable on Nov. 6 at 12 p.m. ET. Click to register.&nbsp;</a>
</blockquote>
As the CFPB works towards this final rulemaking, here are three things financial institutions, fintechs, and other data providers and recipients can do today:&nbsp;
<ol>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><a href="https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/newsroom/cfpb-proposes-rule-to-jumpstart-competition-and-accelerate-shift-to-open-banking/">Read the proposed rule</a> to make you understand what this means for your organization, including types of data covered and how it will impact your processes, technology, and systems. (See below for our summary on what this NPRM includes)</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Help inform the final rulemaking by providing commentary to the CFPB ahead of its comments deadline on December 29.&nbsp;</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Understand where your organization will fall on the timeline to be compliant &mdash; and start planning budgets and resources needed to meet these deadlines. Larger organizations (based on total assets or revenue) will have a heavier lift in the short term to meet requirements in the first six months, while others will have at least 1 year or more.&nbsp;</li>
</ol>
<h2>What is Section 1033?&nbsp;</h2>
In 2010, Congress passed the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank Act). Section 1033 authorizes the CFPB to prescribe rules requiring &ldquo;a covered person [to] make available to a consumer, upon request, information in the control or possession of the covered person concerning the consumer financial product or service that the consumer obtained from such covered person, including information relating to any transaction, series of transactions, or to the account including costs, charges and usage data.&rdquo;
<h2>What Does the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking Include?&nbsp;</h2>
It&rsquo;s important to note that the CFPB isn&rsquo;t attempting to cover the entire financial ecosystem with its initial proposed rulemaking. The <a href="https://www.consumerfinance.gov/rules-policy/notice-opportunities-comment/open-notices/required-rulemaking-on-personal-financial-data-rights/">NPRM calls out Regulation E accounts and Regulation Z credit card accounts to start</a>. This includes checking accounts, savings accounts, credit cards, prepaid cards, digital wallets, and other electronic payments.&nbsp;
Any data provider, financial institution, card issuer, or other entity that controls or possesses information concerning one of these covered products or services will be subject to this ruling. We expect more financial products, such as investments, loans, mortgages, etc., to be added over time.&nbsp;
<h2>What&rsquo;s Next</h2>
The CFPB is currently seeking comments on or before December 29, 2023, on any aspect of this proposal, with plans to finalize and issue the final ruling by Fall 2024. MX will actively participate in the comment period. We look forward to collaborating with our clients and partners to ensure a wide spectrum of voices are represented, including industry partners such as the <a href="https://www.mx.com/blog/why-fdx-matters/">Financial Data Exchange</a> &mdash;&nbsp;particularly around creating industry standards that drive collaboration and innovation to deliver the outcomes consumers need and deserve.&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/newsroom/prepared-remarks-of-cfpb-director-rohit-chopra-on-the-proposed-personal-financial-data-rights-rule/">Director Chopra said in his prepared remarks</a> that the CFPB will also &ldquo;be issuing additional information on how industry standard-setting organizations can obtain recognition from the CFPB. Market players will be able to look to these standards, which will evolve with time as technology progresses, to be part of the new open banking ecosystem in the United States. We also intend to cover additional product types in future rulemaking, to continue to foster more competition and consumer choice throughout the market.&rdquo;&nbsp;
Once the final rule is published, the CFPB NPRM currently outlines 4 compliance dates for data providers based on asset size or revenue:&nbsp;
<table>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td>
Compliance Deadlines
</td>
<td>
Applicable Data Providers
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
6 Months After Publication
</td>
<td>
Depository Institutions that hold at least $500B in total assets
Non-depository institutions with at least $10B in revenue
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
1 Year After Publication
</td>
<td>
Depository institutions with at least $50B in total assets (but less than $500B)
Non-depository institutions with less than $10B in revenue
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
2.5 Years After Publication
</td>
<td>
Depository institutions with at least $850M in total assets
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
4 Years After Publication
</td>
<td>
Depository institutions with less than $850M in total assets
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<h2>Why Consumer Financial Data Rights Matter</h2>
<a href="https://www.mx.com/whitepapers/open-finance-creates-a-better-money-experience/">Today&rsquo;s money experience is inherently messy</a> both for consumers and financial providers seeking to meet increasingly complex consumer needs. Consumers must look across a multitude of financial accounts to try to manage their financial life &mdash;&nbsp;with most maintaining relationships with an average of 5 to 10 different financial services organizations, from their primary bank to PayPal and Venmo to various credit cards, investment accounts, and loans. And, today&rsquo;s closed financial ecosystem makes it difficult for consumers to switch to a new financial provider or take their financial data with them.&nbsp;&nbsp;
We&rsquo;ve all heard the expression that knowledge is power. Engaging with their finances on multiple platforms means they don&rsquo;t have a consolidated view of their financial data or who may be accessing it. And, if they ever choose to leave their current providers, it&rsquo;s not easy to transfer and take their financial data with them.&nbsp;
Consumers should own, have access to, and have the ability to control all their financial data. Full stop. And, <a href="https://www.mx.com/research/what-influences-where-consumers-choose-to-bank/">consumers overwhelmingly agree (82%) that they own their financial data</a> and should be able to control who has access to it.&nbsp;
This empowers consumers to better understand their finances and make financial decisions that will improve their overall health (e.g., seek improved interest rates, increase savings rates, etc.) &mdash;&nbsp;as well as spur innovation and competition in the marketplace.&nbsp;
<h2>Why Standardized APIs are Important</h2>
Most financial data sharing still relies on less reliable and less secure methods that require consumers to share credentials with a third party. This screen scraping or credential sharing is less reliable and places a heavy technical burden on bank infrastructure, which creates an unstable customer experience. Connections frequently break as passwords, systems, and processes change.&nbsp;
This leads to frustration and could potentially cost businesses customers in the long run. Screen scraping also puts consumers and businesses at increased risk since it requires consumers to provide usernames and passwords to a third party. And, consumers may be left wondering who has access to their data while businesses have little visibility into where data is shared.
An open banking or open finance application programming interface (API) allows consumers to access their transaction data without the need to share usernames and passwords, and eliminates the technical burden of screen scraping. Direct connections replace credentials with tokens, delivering higher levels of security, faster speeds, and higher connection success rates.&nbsp;
<h2>How MX Can Help</h2>
MX is making it easier than ever for financial institutions of all sizes to accelerate open finance adoption and enhance the money experience for consumers through Data Access. The platform enables institutions to deliver a safe and secure connectivity experience for their customers. With consumer authorized and permissioned data sharing, customers gain visibility and control over which apps and institutions access their data &mdash; enabling them to grant, manage, and revoke access at any time.&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.mx.com/products/data-access/">Data Access</a> is an open API platform built on FDX standards that improves time-to-market and reduces costs to deliver secure data sharing, as well as provide the groundwork for greater insights about customer behaviors, trends, and needs. It provides financial institutions with the ability to monitor and manage where consumers are sharing their financial data and the tools to implement a more secure data-sharing experience with token-based connectivity.

U.S. Consumer Financial Data Rights are Almost Here

At MX, we believe the future of our industry means embracing Open Finance, which begins with secure and reliable access for consumers to share their data. 

Want to learn how we can help you with your open finance strategy?

Want to learn how MX can help you with your open finance strategy?

Open Finance is the next step beyond Open Banking, enabling access and sharing of consumer data to even more financial products and services — not just banking.

What is Open Finance? Definitions, Benefits, and APIs

Our latest survey of 1,000+ U.S. consumers shows current attitudes on financial wellness. 

What is Financial Wellness? It’s Not Today’s Consumer Money Experience

MX’s latest consumer boils down how consumers define financial wellness, and current spending and saving attitudes and behaviors. 

What Financial Wellness Means: Consumer Attitudes Today | MX Blog

Financial wellness can mean different things to different people. But, according to our latest MX survey of 1,000+ U.S. consumers, it boils down to one essential thing &mdash; being able to live without worrying about money. However, the last few years &mdash;&nbsp;from the COVID-19 pandemic to rising interest rates to the recent collapse of several financial institutions &mdash; have brought a whirlwind of challenges that threaten their financial security. Here&rsquo;s a few key stats that show how consumers feel today:&nbsp;
Somewhat Optimistic for the Future: Forty-four percent agree they feel confident their financial situation is better than 12 months ago. This is even higher among younger generations (Gen Z: 56%, Millennials: 51%), and those who identify as Asian, Black, Hispanic, or other (50% compared to 39% of those who identify as White).&nbsp;
Covering Costs: When asked what statement best describes their current financial situation, nearly one-third of consumers say they are confident in their ability to cover any expenses, with Baby Boomers (41%) and Millennials (34%) most confident. That said, 26% of respondents said they are worried about how they would cover unexpected expenses and 13% say they do not always have enough to pay for everyday necessities.&nbsp;
Money Worries: Forty-eight percent of respondents say money is a source of stress for them and thinking about money makes them anxious (47%). Additionally, 76% of respondents agree they are worried about rising costs due to inflation. And, in the face of a potential recession, consumers are taking steps to prepare:&nbsp;&nbsp;
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">40% of consumers agree they are depositing less money into savings or investment accounts in the face of a potential recession.&nbsp;</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">At the same time, 45% say they are not currently contributing to a 401(k) account.&nbsp;</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">But, they are not yet moving money away from investment accounts. Only 24% agree they have moved money away from investment accounts due to market fluctuations.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">41% of consumers agree they are carrying a balance month-to-month on their credit cards. This is highest among Millennials (44%) and Gen X (48%).</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">65% agree they have cut items from their budget to save money. This is highest among Gen X at 72%.</li>
</ul>
2023 Financial Goals: When asked about their top financial goals for the year, 42% of respondents are saving for a large purchase or retirement and 21% are paying off debt.&nbsp;
Check out the full research report below for more.&nbsp;

Financial wellness can mean different things to different people. But, according to our latest MX survey of 1,000+ U.S. consumers, it boils down to one essential thing — being able to live without worrying about money. 

What Financial Wellness Means for Consumers

Financial institution and fintech leaders share their perspectives on how to win in today’s increasingly competitive marketplace.


Want to learn more about how to win the battle for deposits?

Catch the replay of this panel discussion

Growing and retaining deposits is more difficult than ever. Here’s what leaders from U.S. Bank, Morningstar, Atomic Financial, and Webster Bank had to say.

Growing Deposits in Today’s Competitive Marketplace | MXS 2023

<a href="https://www.mx.com/guides/grow-retain-deposits-with-mx/">Growing and retaining deposits is more difficult than ever</a>. And, while there is no one-size-fits-all approach, knowing your customer and building a relationship are key for both financial institutions and fintechs.&nbsp;
Here&rsquo;s what leaders from U.S. Bank, Morningstar, Atomic Financial, and Webster Bank shared about how to win in today&rsquo;s increasingly competitive marketplace at the <a href="https://www.mx.com/summit/2023/">2023 Money Experience Summit</a>:&nbsp;
<h2>Prioritize the onboarding experience.&nbsp;</h2>
The first few weeks with a new customer can set the tone: &ldquo;... If you do that right over the course of the first couple of days and weeks, then you've earned the right to then deepen the relationship based on either explicit information they've told you about them, or implicit information that we pulled from data and insights,&rdquo; says Chancze Lepore, Senior Vice President, Digital Account Opening and Onboarding, at U.S. Bank.
<h2>Align on the jobs to be done. </h2>
Ensure that everyone in the organization is aligned around where you can win and outperform. Then, it&rsquo;s really about focusing on the things the customer needs most and the jobs they need to do. How you show up as a financial provider to help them meet those needs is how you win.&nbsp;
<h2>Tap into the power of your data.&nbsp;</h2>
According to Anthony Termini, Senior Vice President of Business Development at Morningstar, data is at the core of everything it does. It&rsquo;s there to inform the investor and ultimately, help to produce better financial outcomes. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s how to drive insights quickly and &hellip; in a really proactive manner, to get in front of the customer.&rdquo;&nbsp;
<h2>Be brilliant at the basics.&nbsp;</h2>
Don&rsquo;t jump to advanced solutions when the user experience for basic tasks is not where it should be. Can you easily move money in and out of the bank without a lot of friction? Can you easily navigate the application? There has to be a focus on continuously testing and monitoring the UX design of your applications so the experience is where it should be. Then you can add on all of these phenomenal advanced tools and features.&nbsp;

Here’s what leaders from U.S. Bank, Morningstar, Atomic Financial, and Webster Bank had to say about growing and retaining deposits in today's competitive landscape.

How to Win in Today’s Battle for Deposits

Green Beret Jason Van Camp shares leadership lessons from his service in the United States military in honor of Veterans Day.

Green Beret Jason Van Camp shares leadership lessons from his 15 years of service in the United States Army Special Forces.

Leadership Lessons from Green Beret Jason Van Camp | MX Blog

While leading a corporate team can look quite different from leading a team on a battlefield, some principles still translate. MX welcomed decorated Green Beret Jason Van Camp to MX headquarters in honor of Veterans Day to share leadership lessons from his 15 years of military service.
Start with your passion. Growing up, Van Camp knew he wanted a career he felt connected to and that complemented his skillset. As he reflected, he realized serving and helping others had remained a consistent passion through his life. This led him to serve in the military, become a Green Beret, and eventually found <a href="https://missionsixzero.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mission Six Zero</a>, an organization dedicated to coaching to optimize performance through self-awareness.
Officers eat last. United States military officers are taught to let all soldiers eat before them, and in some cases, help serve their meals. This principle of making sure your team is resourced and equipped ahead of yourself fosters a foundation of trust.
Accountability is key. Anything you do, or fail to do, is your responsibility. For leaders, this extends beyond yourself to your team as well. If an incident occurs, the leader is responsible.&nbsp;
Build a &ldquo;I have your back&rdquo; culture. Creating a cohesive team at scale requires that each team member be bought in, both to the mission and the team. Leaders can do this by focusing on what each individual team member values and cares about most. Team performance significantly improves when members communicate well on a human level.

MX welcomed Green Beret Jason Van Camp to share leadership lessons from his 15 years of service in the United States military.

Leadership Lessons from the Battlefield to the Boardroom

A panel of industry leaders share their thoughts on expanding accessibility around financial wellness and increasing engagement.

Want to learn more about how to unite financial perspectives? 

Watch the full panel discussion on Closing the Financial Advice Gap.

Industry leaders from Mentoro, Franklin Templeton, MX, Truist Bank, and Moneyhub share their thoughts on expanding engagement and accessibility around financial wellness.  

Bridging the Gap in Financial Wisdom | MX Blog

In a time when financial resources are plenty and <a href="https://www.mx.com/blog/present-and-future-of-open-banking/">open data</a> is becoming more accessible, why <a href="https://www.mx.com/whitepapers/financial-wellness-for-the-masses/">do one-third of consumers feel financial providers don&rsquo;t do enough</a>? Financial institutions and fintechs must work to build solutions and awareness that prioritize financial wellness that reach the majority of consumers, instead of the few.&nbsp;
A panel of industry experts discussed leveraging technology to personalize financial experiences, the benefits of value-based saving, and how to measure the return on consumer relationships at this year&rsquo;s <a href="https://www.mx.com/summit/2023/">Money Experience Summit</a>.
<h2>Financial Health versus Financial Wealth&nbsp;</h2>
Building financial strength is a continuous process, not a one-time event. This, paired with the ever-evolving landscape of the financial ecosystem, has inspired organizations to focus on continuous learning, personalized investment frameworks, and employer-driven initiatives to support consumers with ongoing, engaging experiences. Finding creative solutions to actively shape the financial well-being of these individuals is key as consumers navigate the complexities of financial health.&nbsp;
<h2>Designing Customer-Centric Products</h2>
A large part of financial wellness is dependent on establishing goals or creating value-based wealth management. By optimizing goals and shifting the risk paradigm, this approach considers emotional concerns about achieving life milestones, like sending a child to college or purchasing a home. By creating a personalized portfolio and actional advice, consumers can more easily work towards the objectives they&rsquo;ve identified as priorities. This emotional intelligence also comes into play in organizations' product development process. In today&rsquo;s age of hyper-personalization, the importance of curating and analyzing user data is key.&nbsp;
<h2>The Human Element in Financial Technology&nbsp;</h2>
Despite advancements in data and artificial intelligence, the human touch remains pivotal. This emphasis on deeper integration of the human element in financial programs will foster genuine connections and user engagement. One element of this is empowering consumers to budget effectively and save strategically by incorporating data that provides them with a comprehensive view of their financial landscape. Another concept is establishing employer-sponsored emergency savings to help users safeguard unforeseen expenses and create a pathway to start saving for retirement. As the industry continues to innovate, the intersection of empathy and technology emerges as a driving force, promising a more holistic and user-centric approach to financial well-being.&nbsp;
<h2>Measuring Success Based on Relationships not Acquisition</h2>
Tying financial wellness programs to profit-centric motives undermines the purpose &mdash; which is not client acquisition but rather to strengthen consumer relationships. With return on investment (ROI) measured through the lens of strengthening individual relationships, organizations are able to more easily focus on outcomes.

A panel of industry leaders share their perspectives on increasing engagement and expanding accessibility around financial wellness.  

Financial Guidance for the Many, Not the Few

We list several major financial data aggregators in the United States that play a key role in the financial ecosystem, starting with MX for obvious reasons.

Learn more about how MX enables faster, more dependable connections.

A list of the major financial data aggregators in the U.S. These aggregators enable customers to see all of their financial accounts in one place.

A List of Financial Data Aggregators in the United States

<h2>What is Financial Data Aggregation?</h2>
Financial data aggregation, also known as account aggregation, is the process of bringing together information from different financial accounts into a single place. It enables consumers to connect and view their checking accounts, savings accounts, investment accounts, credit card accounts, mortgages, HSAs, FSAs, and much more to gain a comprehensive picture of their finances.&nbsp;
There are a number of financial data aggregators that help facilitate this process across the world. In the United States, financial data aggregation has existed since the mid-1990s when banks and credit unions created the first digital banking applications. Today, as the majority of consumers have 3 to 5 financial accounts with various banks, credit unions, or other financial providers, it&rsquo;s no surprise that financial data aggregation is more important than ever.&nbsp;
Without financial data aggregation, consumers must look across a multitude of financial accounts to try to manage their financial life. On the other side, financial providers only glimpse a fragment of a consumer&rsquo;s financial picture and lack visibility into where consumers are sharing data from their systems with others.
There are several ways that financial institutions and fintechs can enable consumers to link their financial accounts today:
<ul>
<li>Screen Scraping or Credential Sharing: <a href="https://www.mx.com/blog/screen-scraping-vs-bank-apis-whats-the-difference/">Screen scraping</a> requires consumers to share their username and password with the data recipient to gain access to their data.&nbsp;</li>
<li>Whitelisted IPs: This allows a financial institution to sanction data sharing with specific IP addresses and see who is accessing their consumers&rsquo; data.</li>
<li>Open Finance APIs: <a href="https://www.mx.com/use-cases/open-finance/">Open finance APIs</a> allow consumers to access their transaction data without the need to share usernames and passwords, replacing credentials with tokens, delivering higher levels of security, faster speeds, and higher connection success rates</li>
</ul>
However, with screen scraping and whitelisted IPs, connections frequently break and consumers are left wondering who has access to their data while businesses have little visibility into where data is shared. This leads to frustration and could potentially cost businesses customers in the long run. Learn more about <a href="https://www.mx.com/whitepapers/open-finance-creates-a-better-money-experience/">How Open Finance Creates a Better Money Experience</a>.
<h2>The Future is Open Finance</h2>
That&rsquo;s why the future of financial data aggregation is centered on Open Banking and Open Finance. Open Finance puts the consumer in control of their data, and enables financial institutions and fintechs to deliver more personalized money experiences that drive better outcomes for consumers.<a href="https://www.mx.com/blog/what-is-open-finance/#open-finance-benefits">You can read more about the benefits of Open Finance</a>.
However, the U.S. and Canada are still on the road to Open Finance. In the United States, we&rsquo;ve reached an important milestone in <a href="https://www.mx.com/blog/consumer-financial-data-rights/">making sure consumers have the right to access and control their financial information</a> with the announcement of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau&rsquo;s (CFPB) notice of proposed rulemaking for personal financial data rights under Dodd-Frank Act Section 1033. In Canada, <a href="https://www.mx.com/blog/present-and-future-of-open-banking/">plans are underway but nothing concrete</a> has been shared as of yet.
<h2>Top U.S. Financial Data Aggregators</h2>
As Open Finance continues to take hold, we list several major financial data aggregators in the United States that play a key role in the financial ecosystem. We start with MX for obvious reasons.
<h3>MX Technologies, Inc.</h3>
MX&rsquo;s <a href="https://www.mx.com/products/account-aggregation/">account aggregation solutions</a> enable consumers to easily connect and view all of their financial accounts in one place &mdash; and give financial providers full visibility into consumer financial data to better meet their needs. In addition to connecting accounts, MX also enables financial institutions and fintechs to surface insights from transaction data, and build better money experiences that grow their business and improve consumer outcomes, as well as personal financial management, financial insights and mobile banking.
<h3>Finicity</h3>
Finicity, which launched its first financial product in 2000, has since grown to provide financial data APIs, credit decisioning tools, and financial wellness solutions. It was acquired by Mastercard in 2020.
<h3>Envestnet | Yodlee</h3>
Yodlee was founded in 1999 and purchased by Envestnet in 2015. The company offers data aggregation, with a focus on investment data, and data analytics. Envestnet partners with advisors, banks, wealth management and brokerage firms, RIAs, and other companies.
<h3>Plaid</h3>
Plaid was founded in 2013 with an initial aim to be a money management tool but has since pivoted to help companies &mdash; mainly fintechs &mdash; aggregate data. In 2019, Plaid acquired Quovo, which offers an API management toolkit that helps clients connect to financial data. Plaid also <a href="https://plaid.com/blog/plaid-cra/">recently announced</a> the formation of a new entity that will serve as a consumer reporting agency that will build solutions that deliver ready-made credit risk insights using this information.
<h3>Akoya</h3>
Akoya was spun out of Fidelity into its own company in 2020, but remains owned and operated by Fidelity and 11 major U.S. banks. Its focus is on serving as an intermediary between data providers and data recipients through its Akoya Data Access Network.
***
An article titled <a href="https://tearsheet.co/data/a-buyers-guide-for-data-aggregation/">"A Buyer's Guide to Data Aggregation"</a> from TearSheet contains more information about all these financial aggregators.&nbsp;
<h2>Businesses Can't Afford for Connections to Break</h2>
In fact, <a href="https://www.mx.com/research/consumer-trends-digital-and-mobile-banking" target="_blank" rel="noopener">72% of consumers</a> would likely seek out a different bank or credit union if their current provider couldn&rsquo;t connect their financial accounts to financial apps or other online accounts.
We hope you will choose to partner with a financial data aggregator regardless of who you choose to work with. It's one of the best ways to become the primary financial institution for your customers since it gives them the ability to see all their finances in one place &mdash; in your portal.
Learn more about how MX enables faster, more dependable connections with <a href="https://www.mx.com/products/account-aggregation/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MX Account Aggregation Solutions</a>.
<img src="https://cms.mx.com/assets/406138d7-e413-4b7b-985d-1d106dbaf233?width=985&amp;height=886" alt="Account Aggregation.png" />

Between bites of hot wings, industry experts shared their thoughts on the latest trends in finance and fintech.

Curious what other hot takes they shared?

Industry leaders discuss their spiciest takes on what’s happening in finance and fintech today during this session at Money Experience Summit 2023.

Fintech on Fire: Industry Leaders Share Hot Takes Over Hot Wings | MX Blog

Most conference breakout sessions don&rsquo;t include bibs, barf buckets, and bowls of ranch, but one did at <a href="https://www.mx.com/summit/2023/">Money Experience Summit 2023</a>. In "Hot Takes: Fintech on Fire" Jason Henrichs, CEO of Alloy Labs, guided the panel of industry leaders through hot questions and even hotter wings in this fintech take on the &ldquo;Hot Ones&rdquo; series. Neff Hudson, Founder of Castle Hills Consulting, Mary Wisniewski, Editor-at-Large at Cornerstone Advisors, and Wes Hummel, Chief Technology Officer of MX joined Henrichs on stage to share their honest, and often spicy, opinions on the latest trends in fintech.
Between bites of hot wings and gulps of milk, the panelists shared their thoughts on these key topics:
AI fundamentally changes how banks operate: not just the interface, but also the strategy. From the tactical level to the strategic level, how does AI impact how all financial institutions think about strategy?&nbsp;
Hummel: Tools like ChatGPT use data inputs to respond to prompts. If that data isn't correct, the implications could be severe. Making any kind of decision in an automated way requires the data to be good, especially in cases like lending decisions. There&rsquo;s significant work to be done to overcome today&rsquo;s challenges with data validation, user validation, data security, and producing accurate and appropriate responses.&nbsp;
Wisniewski: The software industry built applications that don't learn from user inputs, so the next 10 years will be rewriting these applications to make them smart. That's where generative AI will have a significant impact in creating code. Financial institutions should embrace this because the pace of innovation in the banking industry is glacial compared to the pace of innovation among competitors. The big tech companies have trust, will develop safety, and specialize in convenience. Meaning the main competitive advantages in the consumer market have already dissipated and I anticipate will only continue to dissipate faster.
<img src="https://cms.mx.com/assets/8e36d5be-695e-4bf2-831c-01c19b09d80f?width=1374&amp;height=690" alt="Screenshot 2023 11 14 at 8.59.19 Am" />
NPR&rsquo;s podcast had a recent segment exploring &ldquo;Is it a bank&rdquo;? What does it mean to be a bank today?
Wisniewski: Banks need to become fast and easy. Who is fast and easy? Amazon. Return something and it shows up in my balance, easy to spend again later. I think one of the biggest challenges is financial institutions viewing the world through this lens of what it means to be an incumbent in the future, especially in this shift toward embeddedness. Fast and easy means the transaction is part of a bigger story.&nbsp;
Hudson: The provocative conversation used to center around banks evolving from dumb pipes to smart pipes. We have to rethink what being a bank means. Instead, banks should focus on the safety offered through regulation. Consumers care about the safety of their money and assets. I think the only thing that a bank is to a consumer is: is it insured or not? Does it have FDIC coverage? While there needs to be a focus on safety and convenience, it&rsquo;s essential to care more about customers and less about profits. That's why I think credit unions will compete well in what appears to be another market contraction over the next five to ten years.
Will we say fintech in 5 years or will fast banks and fintech meld together?
Wisniewski: Five years ago people asked when we would drop FinTech and just use banking. Today, it&rsquo;s still distinctly team fintech, team bank. I think that will stick because it's like the stereotype of entrepreneur versus tried and true.&nbsp;
Hudson: I think someone will invent a new clever buzzword. FinTech will remain because RegTech is our hidden salvation underneath. The whole reason to build these open APIs was to keep pace with the innovation outside of our walls and meet our customers where they are. Younger generations don&rsquo;t visit bank branches or think of banks as places. It's a service. And that service should be wherever they want it.
<img src="https://cms.mx.com/assets/543aa19a-a127-412e-8985-ece922e0ec8c?width=2738&amp;height=1814" alt="Screenshot 2023 11 14 at 9.01.11 Am" />
&nbsp;

We asked industry experts to share their spiciest takes on the latest trends in finance and fintech over hot wings.

What’s Your Spiciest Fintech Take? How 4 Industry Leaders Answered

In today’s reality of record-high fraud, how do financial service providers keep up? A panel of payments experts weigh in.

In the face of record-high fraud, how do financial institutions mitigate risk? Here’s a few things to consider from MX, Sardine, Open Payments, Unit21, and Kount. 

What Real-Time Payments and AI Mean for Fraud | MXS 2023

According to a panel of payments and fraud experts, fraudsters are some of the most creative entrepreneurial people in the industry. And, as technology advances, so do fraud practices and scams.&nbsp;
For instance, we're already seeing that the level of scams which have existed forever (think Nigerian princes) have become much more sophisticated. Gone are the days of scam emails riddled with misspellings and obvious signs of fraud. Now, scammers can leverage ChatGPT to write more convincing emails. Fraudsters can use the mountain of digital data about a consumer to hyper-target their scams. And, bad actors can impersonate businesses, friends, and family more accurately.&nbsp;
At the same time, the evolution of the digital payments landscape, including the <a href="https://www.mx.com/blog/open-banking-fednow-where-to-start/">recent launch of FedNow</a>, could mean more instances of real-time fraud as money moves faster into the hands of bad actors.&nbsp;
So, in today&rsquo;s reality of record-high fraud, how do financial institutions and fintechs keep up? Here&rsquo;s a few things to consider from our <a href="https://www.mx.com/summit/2023/rise-of-fraud-protecting-payments/">panel of payments and fraud experts</a>:&nbsp;
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Establish real-time fraud reporting as an important foundation.&nbsp;</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Employ identity and event validation on both sides of payments to ensure they are initiated and received by the right people for the right events.&nbsp;</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><a href="https://www.mx.com/blog/four-ways-open-finance-uplevels-security/">Leverage open banking APIs</a> to create a more seamless, secure environment for payments. &ldquo;With APIs, you can not only get confirmation of payment, but you can actually put in flexible fraud tools ahead of submission of the payment to the network,&rdquo; said Bradley Wilkes, CEO, Open Payment Network.</li>
</ul>
Watch the full replay of this session on <a href="https://www.mx.com/summit/2023/rise-of-fraud-protecting-payments/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Rise of Fraud and Protecting Payments on MXS Rewind</a>.

As technology advances, so do fraud practices and scams. So how do financial institutions and fintechs keep up? Our panel of payments and fraud experts share a few things to consider.



The Future of Fraud: Real-Time Payments and Artificial Intelligence

Brent Beardall shared his reflections of his time at WaFd thus far during a fireside chat at Money Experience Summit 2023.

Want to learn more about how financial institutions can make a difference? 

WaFd President and CEO Brent Beardall shares his experience putting community promises into practice to support the financial needs of consumers.

Putting Promises into Action | MX Blog

When now President and Chief Executive Officer Brent Beardall first joined WaFd Bank, the general ledger for the holding company was kept by hand. It was 2001 and Beardall described the bank as staying as far away from technology as possible. As he marveled at the company&rsquo;s 17% efficiency ratio, he felt the bank could make an even greater impact for its clients by embracing technology.&nbsp;
Beardall shared his reflections of his time at WaFd thus far during a fireside chat at <a href="https://www.mx.com/summit/2023/">Money Experience Summit 2023</a>. For him, investing in technology meant the bank was continuing its commitment to building healthy and thriving communities by delivering valuable money experiences to consumers. When asked about putting this into practice, Beardall put it plainly, &ldquo;Don't say what you want to do. Do what you want to do.&rdquo;
It&rsquo;s nice for a financial institution to promise to support consumers when times get tough, but what matters is how it actually shows up during tough times. One example: when the U.S. government shuts down. When this happened in 2019, Transportation Security Administration (TSA) workers were categorized as non-essential employees. This meant even though they had to work to keep airports open, they were not guaranteed back pay. This extended beyond TSA to other government roles including FBI agents, border patrol, and more.
<img src="https://cms.mx.com/assets/2f3a78ab-15ba-4419-87cf-3cb98eec5ef7?width=1024&amp;height=683" alt="D M3 A5650" />
As Beardall and his family watched the news that Saturday, his wife asked what he would do as a bank CEO to help. After giving his canned response that they would offer to defer a mortgage payment for impacted individuals, he added, &ldquo;that's chicken.&rdquo; He realized, &ldquo;these individuals aren't struggling with their mortgage payments 'cause they don't own their houses. They likely are renters and they don't have a nest egg to fall back on. So they are literally worried about how they are going to put food on the table.&rdquo;
The next morning, Beardall brought the management team together. By Tuesday, WaFd launched a program to help impacted government workers with a line of credit for up to six paychecks, with no origination fees, no interest for six months, and without a credit check. The program was open to both existing clients and non-clients.&nbsp;
While shareholders were initially perplexed, it was important to Beardall to keep banking a noble profession. In his view, financial service providers are here to help provide certainty when there's uncertainty in the world.

Financial service providers need to put community promises into practice to support the financial needs of consumers. WaFd President and CEO Brent Beardall shares his experience at Money Experience Summit.

Keeping the Nobility in Banking: Putting Promises Into Action

A consumer's self-perception about money may have an outsized impact on their engagement with financial services and products.

Catch the full replay of Rebel’s session at Money Experience Summit

Rebel’s latest research revealed how a consumer’s self-perception can influence financial behaviors and engagement.

How Financial Literacy  Drives Engagement | MXS 2023

Post contributed by Leah Hacker, CEO of Rebel
What people believe about money may have an outsized impact on how they engage with financial services and products. In a recently published report,<a href="https://www.rebel-co.com/resources/the-x-factor"> The X Factor: Financial Literacy and Personalization</a>, by<a href="https://www.rebel-co.com/"> Rebel,</a> researchers found that an individual&rsquo;s perceived financial literacy (e.g., how well they believe they are at money matters) is more indicative of their ongoing engagement and usage with financial products than their actual financial literacy level (e.g., how well they actually are at money matters).
As the financial industry continues to evolve and doors open for more advanced technology, there is an opportunity to rethink how services and products are delivered.
Rebel&rsquo;s latest research revealed how a consumer&rsquo;s self-perception can influence behavior and engagement.
Confidence in money matters. Fifty-eight percent of folks who believe they have an above-average financial literacy level also report high levels of confidence in managing long-term financial goals, compared to only 41% of those who actually have an above-average financial literacy level. Translation: People who believed they were good at money management felt more confident in reaching their long-term goals.&nbsp;
Positive feelings about money. Of those who believed they had an above-average financial literacy level, 79% reported they felt successful, hopeful, in control, happy, or secure when investing. Similarly outsized positive perspectives were reported for saving and money management activities.
Translation: People who believed they were good at money management reported positive emotions about money management. The key here is that this positive perspective impacts their outlook on the financial industry.
Positive outlook on the financial industry. Individuals who hold an above-average perception of their own financial literacy have a more positive outlook on the financial industry. For example, 85% of those with above-average perceptions reported that the financial industry provided products and services that were useful to their personal situation.
Translation: We know that people who have a more positive outlook on the financial industry are more likely to engage on an ongoing basis.
Higher product usage. Folks with high perceived financial literacy levels used more, on average, 5 financial products and/or services compared to those with low perceived financial literacy, only using 2 products and/or services.
Translation: Those who believe they are good at money management utilize the services and products that can help them manage their finances.
As financial services and products continue to serve a diverse population of consumers, there&rsquo;s an opportunity to consider financial literacy as a strong foundation for designing more personalized experiences.&nbsp;
Download the report to learn more: <a href="https://www.rebel-co.com/resources/the-x-factor">&nbsp;The X Factor: Financial Literacy and Personalization</a>.
Rebel is a research and strategy firm that works with finance brands to better help them understand who their audience is and what they need.

A consumer's self-perception can influence financial behaviors and engagement according to Rebel's latest research.

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