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JP Morgan Chase is poised to introduce sweeping changes to the way US Fintechs access consumer bank data — and the financial implications could be seismic.
According to sources cited by Bloomberg, America’s largest bank has begun distributing pricing schedules to data aggregators, laying the groundwork to charge technology firms for the privilege of accessing customer account information.
The proposed fees, reportedly due to take effect later this year, could total hundreds of millions of dollars annually, striking at the heart of the Fintech sector’s data-dependent business models.
JPM’s Final Pricing Structure
JP Morgan’s new data access fees
While JP Morgan’s final pricing structure remains under negotiation, payments-focused firms such as Venmo, Robinhood and Coinbase are expected to bear the highest costs.
Aggregators like Plaid and MX — intermediaries connecting banks and FinTech apps — are also in the firing line and are likely to pass on the charges to their clients, and ultimately, consumers.
A JP Morgan spokesperson said the bank’s move reflects significant investment in secure data-sharing infrastructure.
“We’ve had productive conversations and are working with the entire ecosystem to ensure we’re all making the necessary investments in the infrastructure that keeps our customers safe,” the spokesperson told Bloomberg.
The development comes amid intense debate surrounding Section 1033 of the Dodd-Frank Act — also known as the “Open Banking rule” — which was finalised last year by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).
This rule mandates that financial institutions must grant consumers access to their own financial data and share it with authorised third parties at no cost.
While proponents argue that such provisions level the competitive playing field and enhance consumer choice, major banks have raised concerns about increased fraud exposure and operational risks.
Section 1033
The future of Section 1033 is now uncertain, as a Republican-led legal challenge seeks to overturn the regulation.
If successful, it would hand greater control over data access terms to incumbent banks — reinforcing the shift JPMorgan is now spearheading.
Despite growing consumer interest in Open Banking — with 46% of US users saying they would be “highly willing” to use Open Banking for payments and financial services — actual adoption remains low, with only around 10% having done so.
This disconnect highlights both the latent potential and the systemic friction hampering progress.
JP Morgan’s move, while framed as a security upgrade, may represent a deeper strategic effort to monetise its data assets and reassert control over a fast-evolving digital payments ecosystem.
For US Fintechs, the next chapter in Open Banking may prove both defining and difficult.
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