Mastercard acquires Aiia to expand open banking reach

Mastercard has entered into an agreement to acquire Aiia, a leading European open banking technology provider. 

Aiia offers a direct connection to banks through a single API, allowing its customers to develop and launch new digital solutions that meet the needs of everyday life, work and play. Mastercard stresses that Aiia has "expertise in providing safe and secure data access" that aligns with its own "data responsibility principles". The terms of the deal were not disclosed. 

The value of open banking 

Open banking is democratising financial services by putting consumers at the center of where and how their data is used to provide the services they want and need. Fintechs and banks use this consumer permissioned data to provide easier and more inclusive access to credit, personal financial management, digital wallets and payments services.

“The value of open banking comes through empowering consumers and businesses to use their own data to obtain financial services solutions simply, securely and quickly. The addition of Aiia anchors our European open banking efforts and allows us to continue to meet our customers where they are,” said Craig Vosburg, Chief Product Officer, Mastercard. 

“As open banking continues to ignite innovation, we’re committed to providing a unique set of technology platforms, data connectivity and infrastructure combined with data privacy and security principles. This will help fintechs and financial institutions innovate, gather feedback and scale faster and more effectively than ever to power smarter, more meaningful experiences,” he added.

Today, Aiia’s open banking platform and expertise, including strong API connectivity and payment capabilities, has shown significant growth coupled with a relentless focus on quality. Its customer-centric approach and ambition to create open banking that simply works complements Mastercard’s existing distribution channels, technology and data practices.
 

Working to offer consumers the best experience 

“For the past decade, we have worked to build Aiia into a leading and quality-driven open banking platform, which has onboarded hundreds of banks and fintechs onto safe and secure open banking rails. We have worked closely alongside banks, customers and local authorities to ensure that our APIs show the true effect of open banking. We’re excited to become a part of Mastercard and progress our journey of empowering people to bring their financial data and accounts into play - safely and transparently,” said Rune Mai, CEO & Founder, Aiia.

The deal compliments Mastercard's acquisition, last year, of American open banking player Finicity. Specifically, the connectivity of Aiia in Europe will enable Mastercard to deliver the credit decisioning and credit scoring applications of Finicity to European clients. Meanwhile, the connectivity of Finicity in the US will help deliver the account information services and payment applications of Aiia to American clients.