Open Banking
April 30, 2025
In 1870, Jules Verne wrote 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, a tale of an underwater boat, the Nautilus, slicing through the deep oceans on a power no one could understand. It was pure science fiction at the time, a dream of a machine that didn’t need wind or coal. Today, nuclear-powered submarines power beneath the waves, quiet and real, as Verne once imagined.
What if the next leap is already here, and not some far-off tomorrow? A financial partner that thinks and acts in your interests and not just records your transactions and makes payments convenient? What was once seemingly a science fiction concept has perhaps started to creep into your financial life. Consider an AI financial partner sorting your world to your benefit before asking. Meet Fyrah; she is this new Banking Consciousness, an AI committed to improving your finances and life, all under your approval. Here’s how she works.
Picture a retail banking environment where your financial partner isn’t a frequently updated mobile application or an intimidating brick-and-mortar institution. Fyrah, your financial partner, is discreet and unassuming, yet always present in your financial life. Fyrah is watching your spending and your plans through your online digital presence. Fyrah aims to simplify your life and grow your wealth. Fyrah is a consciousness, not a ledger, and is looking ahead, digging into your world to nudge you towards better.
Take the day-to-day world as a relevant example: Your job may feel stale, and your salary does not reflect your worth. Fyrah recognises that you can do better and has already accepted input from LinkedIn’s AI. LinkedIn’s AI identifies an opening with a better salary for which you are entirely qualified, so Fyrah drops you a note: “This role may be for you and will help your savings plan for the bigger Family Home. Apply?” Perhaps you’re considering a new luxury vehicle; Fyrah has reviewed the total outgoing monthly fuel cost, insurance, road taxes, and more and suggests, “Perhaps change your luxury car choice for a newer mini-SUV? The economising will save you at least €1,500 a year.” Fyrah is not nagging; the consciousness is fixing and identifying remedies before you’ve mistakenly developed a financial issue. Are your taxes an issue? Perhaps you pay more than you should. Fyrah has researched the tax regulations and plans your tax reliefs. If you allow, Fyrah will park some funds in a nearby tax haven, all within the defined tax regulations, saving you money. Perhaps Fyrah can shift some idle funds into a green ETF she knows you would approve of.
You don’t see Fyrah being here to drag you into the banker’s interests. She is searching for deals that benefit you, growing your wealth in line with your risk appetites, saving and planning for you with your input and supervision, learning your preferences, and advising in your best interest.
Fyrah is connected to your digital world, including your smart wearables, and transforms health data into valuable information. Your health data is no longer just steps counted; Fyrah now also detects stress and acts to minimise your anxiety. Your heart rate may jump while reading a tax email. Fyrah addresses your tax payment concerns and makes adjustments with your approval. You’ve been diligently chalking up running miles in the morning before work; now, Fyrah talks to your health insurance AI and trims your premium. Unused subscriptions that you may have forgotten about and not used for a while, such as Netflix from lockdown days, are paused, and the savings are transferred to your holiday fund after checking “Fine to cut this?” Fyrah saves Euros and eases your burdens with you in charge.
Fyrah is also a wealth machine. Your hard-earned funds will work for you, and Fyrah trades and saves. A new tech stock is perhaps moving bullishly. Fyrah buys low and sells high using your allocated funds or perhaps creates a new pension fund. When purchasing for your small business, Fyrah tracks and logs your VAT returns, always verifying with your approval.
Fyrah isn’t an additional digital noise for you to filter. She is a thinker, a fixer, working to your benefit. She runs silently, analysing but waiting for your word. This is not surrendering choice; it is acting with the best available financial advice based on economic analysis that is in your interest. The free market will quickly identify trusted leaders.
Traditional red-brick banks are still entirely relevant, but tech giants like Amazon and Google are stepping up. Recent new entrants like Klarna and Revolut are being disruptive. Amazon’s Alexa might say, “That new big screen from the Audio-Visual Market you were viewing online? I have found finance at €90 per month for 12 months. Do you want to proceed?”
Traditional banking has not changed yet, but those who invest in and consider this emerging technology are forging new ways of banking. This future will be a showdown of trusted old names, data kings, and AI startups in a race to be actively working in your wallet. Watch for innovative banks with ambitious programs that embrace these subjects!
Ten years on, this is your world with an ever-present financial shadow, complete privacy is limited, but stepping back means a slower, costlier life. If Fyrah makes a mistake, it could hurt, but she will be open about the error and plan a mitigation, and ultimately, you, as the consumer, have the final say.
Finance will not be a drag; this will be your edge. You’re not banking; you’re running things with a Banking Consciousness that is clever, ruthless, and yours.
The Payments Association
St Clement’s House
27 Clements Lane
London EC4N 7AE
© Copyright 2024 The Payments Association. All Rights Reserved. The Payments Association is the trading name of Emerging Payments Ventures Limited.
Emerging Ventures Limited t/a The Payments Association; Registered in England and Wales, Company Number 06672728; VAT no. 938829859; Registered office address St. Clement’s House, 27 Clements Lane, London, England, EC4N 7AE.
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