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Beyond Open Banking: Unlocking Financial Account Access for Brokers in Ireland

• Finerty Team
open-finance ireland brokers financial-data loa

As Ireland awaits a comprehensive Open Finance legislative framework, practical innovation in financial account access is already in motion-driven by real-world broker and client needs. Brokers, hungry for richer, more timely data to deliver better financial advice, are shaping a new phased approach to accessing client financial accounts that moves beyond the limits of current Open Banking capabilities.

The Broker-Driven Evolution of Financial Data Access

Without formal Open Finance legislation, the opening up of financial data has become a demand-led process. Brokers-tasked with gathering information from diverse banks, pensions, investment and insurance companies-are inherently motivated to streamline account access both for their operational efficiency and to better serve their clients.

Phase 1: Automating the Letter of Authority Workflow

Current State: Today, brokers who need to access a client’s accounts outside of Open Banking channels rely on Letters of Authority (LOA). These are formal, often manually created documents that grant brokers the right to request and receive data from account providers (e.g., pension funds, life insurers, investment firms). The process as it stands involves:

  • Manual drafting, sending, and signing of LOA documents (typically via email)
  • Providers responding by sending unstructured account data-often as scanned PDFs, Word, or Excel files
  • Brokers receiving, uploading, and then manually extracting and processing data to build an accurate client profile

This approach is error-prone and time-consuming, limiting brokers’ ability to serve clients quickly and efficiently.

Efficiency Breakthrough: In the first phase of digital transformation, broker and client portals embed automated creation and e-signing of LOAs. These portals route signed LOAs to providers automatically and accept uploads of returned data documents. Advanced document processing extracts and organizes client account information, freeing the advisor to focus on analysis, not admin work.

  • Benefits: Dramatic reduction in administrative burden for brokers, elimination of repetitive errors, significantly faster data analysis, and enhanced client experience
  • Technology: Leverages existing channels (email, file uploads), but with automation and document intelligence layered on top

Phase 2: Provider Portal Adoption-Towards a Seamless Exchange

Next Logical Step: As brokers adopt automated LOA workflows and efficiencies become evident, providers will see the value in evolving beyond email-based exchanges.

  • Providers can accept digital LOA requests and deliver account data directly to brokers via a secure portal, eliminating email dependency
  • Data uploads can be standardized, boosting data quality and security

Provider Perspective: This phase delivers workflow automation and tracking tools for providers, allowing them to manage, audit, and fulfill data access requests efficiently. Both brokers and providers benefit from improved data quality, seamless data transfer, and fully auditable interactions.

  • Benefits: Providers gain operational savings, better control over sensitive data, and reduced compliance risk. Brokers enjoy real-time data feeds, no manual uploads, and a single dashboard view of pending requests.

Phase 3: Transition to True Open Finance-API-Based Access

Vision for the Future: Once the majority of brokers and providers participate in these digital workflows, the ecosystem is primed for a fully standardized, API-driven Open Finance model.

  • Providers expose client-permissioned account data via secure APIs
  • Brokers (with lawful authority via client-granted consent or digitally signed LOA) access structured data directly-no manual handling required

Consent and Compliance Innovations: Where client credential-based authentication is unrealistic (as clients may not have direct online accounts), consent protocols will blend regulated signatures and LOAs with digital identity frameworks to securely authorize broker access.

  • Benefits: No more manual paperwork, error-free data access, standardized data sets, instant updates, vastly improved client experience, and cost savings for all parties

Sharing the Benefits-Incentives for All

The productivity and cost savings produced throughout all three phases will be significant. Providers and brokers can agree commercial models that reflect shared success-whether through revenue sharing or per-transaction fees-making the journey toward Open Finance win-win on both sides. This ensures all parties are incentivized to build and utilize efficient infrastructure long before legislation catches up.

From “Read” to “Write”: The Road Ahead

The framework outlined above addresses only data access (read) on client financial accounts. The next frontier will be the transfer side (write)-enabling brokers to initiate transactions with equivalent rigor and safeguards. Phased adoption, starting from digital authorizations and progressing to secure transaction APIs, will mirror the evolution seen on the “read” side.

In summary: Even in the absence of an Open Finance legal mandate, brokers and providers in Ireland are forging a pragmatic, incremental path to financial account access-reshaping the data landscape with automation, collaboration, and digital consent. Each phase builds practical efficiencies and business value, preparing the sector for a smooth, scalable transition when Open Finance becomes the law of the land.