Citibank is set to join the UK’s Open Banking framework to start piloting new payment and collection services for its clients.
Citi has become the first corporate bank to enroll as a Payment Initiation Service Provider (PISP) on the UK Open Banking Directory. Open Banking in the UK, which went live in January 2018, requires the nine largest UK banks to publish open APIs, enabling regulated third party providers to access bank accounts securely and with account holder consent, via open APIs.
It plans to take advantage of the framework, which is centred around data sharing with FinTech startups, streamline the business of collecting and making payments on behalf of its business customers.
The bank’s participation in the directory is part of a wider shift in the global banking landscape from batch processing to real-time payments and collections as banking systems becoming accessible through APIs.
Ireti Samuel-Ogbu, EMEA head payments and receivable, Treasury and Trade Solutions, Citi commented: “We see Open Banking as a significant development in the banking landscape in Europe and increasingly in other regions as regulators seek to drive competition and innovation in financial services.
“Open Banking in the UK is particularly attractive to us and our clients as it enables collections with open APIs standardised and live across the Competition and Markets Authority nine banks. Citi continues to work with the UK Open Banking Implementation Entity (OBIE) and regulators around the globe to drive positive development in open banking and to deliver payment system innovations that work for both consumer and business users.”
Expanding APIs for Treasury Services
Citi’s Treasury and Trade Solutions (TTS) has also expanded its Application Programming Interface (API) solution through CitiConnect, Citi’s integration platform.
It claims that clients utilizing CitiConnect APIs have made a ‘significant impact on their businesses’ by improving flexibility, accelerating implementation efforts and seamlessly integrating Citi’s capabilities into their native workstations.
CitiConnect APIs also encompass real-time information on FX rates, account statements, direct debits, cut-off times, faster payments, and proof of payment.
“Since launching our first set of CitiConnect APIs over a year ago, clients around the world have been connecting with Citi, accessing critical services using their own treasury workstations or enterprise resource platforms (ERP). And, through our strategic partnerships with various treasury software providers we are helping to further accelerate the integration process,” said Tapodyuti Bose, global head of channels and enterprise services, Citi Treasury and Trade Solutions.
“APIs are proving to be a transformative solution in making real time banking a reality for institutions across geographies and industries.”
Citi has also launched the CitiConnect API Developer Portal, which consists of an online repository where clients can access the latest documentation on Citi’s APIs and a sandbox environment where they can perform technology testing and validation. Usage of the Developer Portal is expected to shorten the client onboarding process, accelerate technical development, and improve the quality of technology integration between Citi and its clients.
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