Access with permission
Open banking enables customers to permit authorised third-party providers to access specified banking services through defined interfaces. It does not mean that everyone can see an account. In the UK model, regulated providers, customer consent and secure bank authentication underpin the experience.
Account information and payment initiation
Account information services can bring permitted account data into another service. Payment initiation services can initiate a bank payment at the customer’s request. Reading balances and initiating a payment are different capabilities with different permissions.
A different journey from cards
A typical pay-by-bank journey moves the customer to their bank’s authentication flow to approve a payment. The application then receives status information. The experience and underlying transfer scheme vary. There is no universal promise that every payment is instant, irreversible or free of fraud.
Ask about scope and status
What data or action did the customer consent to? Which provider is authorised? What happens when consent expires or is withdrawn? Which payment status is final in this implementation? Protection and dispute routes vary by jurisdiction and scheme; do not assume card chargeback rules apply unchanged.