Strategies on open API ecosystems by banks in the U.S. 2024

United States banks that were looking into APIs to help develop BaaS, or banking-as-a-service, largely did so to leverage them for customized workflows. This is according to a survey held among bank representatives in the country, when asked about API strategies followed and their primary goals within their organization. APIs have increasingly become a trend topic within the finance industry since 2022, as they may enable a smoother user experience (i.e., embedded finance) or could be a way to help smoothen cross-border payments. The source states the focus on third-party integration was “unsurprising”, as – in their observation – most banks rely on third parties to provide digital technologies. There is no indication what is meant with “none of the above”, although the source believes it may be an indicator of how similar terms like BaaS, embedded finance or Open Banking are. When asked about BaaS specifically, roughly a third of all the U.S. banks found BaaS an opportunity to streamline operations – more so than a potential way to create new revenue streams.