Banks Embrace Direct Data Integrations For SMB Services

U.S. Bank is shifting away from screen scraping in favor of direct data connectivity, but it’s not the only financial institution (FI) embracing the data strategy. This week’s look at the latest in bank-FinTech collaborations explores how a range of banks is turning to partners and API connectivity to enhance small business services, from lending to payments.

U.S. Bank Nixes Screen Scraping With Akoya

As U.S. Bank shifts away from login-based screen scraping toward API-powered data integrations, the FI has announced a partnership with Akoya to accelerate the transition. An announcement stated that U.S. Bank is now a part of the Akoya Data Access Network, which aims to provide end users with greater control over their data and the third-party platforms with which they share it. In a statement, U.S. Bank Chief Digital Officer for Platforms and Capabilities Gareth Gaston said the bank is now “able to authorize direct connections with data aggregators and FinTechs,” while providing assurance to customers that data remains secure.

Visa Links With Codat For SMB Bank Data Sharing

Also focused on unlocking bank data is Visa, which recently announced a partnership with API provider Codat in Europe. Together, the companies are helping banks across the region access small business data and facilitate data integrations with FinTechs, with a focus on enhanced small business loan underwriting. “Visa has recognized that we address a universal pain point in SME financial services: the manual, slow and limited exchange of financial data between businesses and their service providers,” said Codat CEO Pete Lord in a statement. He added that Visa’s banking clients will be able to enhance their own small business services as a result of the partnership.

Atom Bank Links With Codat, Too

Visa isn’t the only one making use of Codat’s APIs for small business data. U.K. app-first bank Atom is also collaborating with the company to enhance its own small business lending workflows. Atom will implement Codat’s universal API for small business financial data, allowing the bank to link directly into small business customers’ accounting platforms to streamline onboarding and underwriting. “Our partnership with Codat will address the manual and slow exchange of data, making our application process simpler and credit approval faster,” said Atom Business Banking Proposition Manager Tom Renwick in a statement.

Meridian Taps Thinking Capital For SMB Finance

Ontario, Canada-based credit union Meridian announced a partnership with alternative small business lender Thinking Capital to streamline SMB finance workflows. In a press release, Meridian said it will be able to accelerate the time it takes for a small business to apply and get approved for a loan, with access to capital “just days later.” The integration of Thinking Capital technology also supports flexible repayment options without early repayment penalties. In a statement, Thinking Capital President and CEO Stephane Marceau said, “This last year has been particularly difficult for many small businesses in Canada,” and pointed to the partnership with Meridian as key to helping SMBs continue to thrive.

CoCoNet To Power B2B Payments Offering For Raiffeisen

Swiss banking group Raiffeisen has tapped banking software company CoCoNet to develop a B2B payments and cash management offering for small businesses and larger corporate customers of the financial institution, CoCoNet revealed in a recent announcement. Via its range of MULTIVERSA products, CoCoNet will first implement data exchange standardization via the EBICS protocol, remote payment authorization, the ability to retrieve account information across multiple banks, cash pooling and liquidity management solutions, and payment initiation services. Businesses will have access to a dashboard for a holistic view of product offerings, while CoCoNet noted that additional functionality will eventually be added.