From 30 May, New Zealand’s four major banks - ANZ, ASB, BNZ and Westpac - must offer the secure payment service - although some already have it in place.
It allows customers to give a third party (such as an online retailer) permission to connect to their banking information, meaning there is no need to enter credit or debit card details to make a purchase.
Open banking can be used both on retailers’ websites and on their mobile app, if they have one
There are two things here. One is online payments, the other is sharing your data. For online payments, this seems to be a better option that Polipay. And most likely more private than using a credit card.
The data sharing is a whole nother kettle of fish though.
Yes, it’s a slippery slope though. “Oh this is so easy” so you use it. That’s step 1. Then “Give us your data for your rewards”. Oh, I love rewards! $10 off my groceries a week. Then “Your insurance just doubled”.
This is the real problem. And this ship has already sailed - google and data brokers are already creepily tracking your every online and offline move and tying them together.
Your financial providers are covered by a much, much more restrictive set of regulations preventing them from screwing you over like that.
Open Banking seems generally aimed at attacking the nasty behaviour banks have been getting away with, where they gatekeep your financial data in order to prevent you from getting any useful utility out of it unless you pay them extortionate fees.