Strengthening financial freedom & competition: Plaid's submission on the CFPB's 1033 ANPR

Strengthening Financial Freedom and Competition: Plaid’s Submission on the CFPB’s 1033 ANPR

For more than a decade, the drive toward open finance in the U.S. has been powered by consumer demand and developer innovation building a more connected, competitive financial system. From budgeting apps to digital payments and lending platforms, millions of Americans now rely on secure data connectivity to manage their financial lives and access more competitive financial products.

While the market built this ecosystem from the ground up, clear rules of the road are essential to preserve competition, protect consumers, and strengthen what’s working. Thoughtful government action can build trust, foster innovation and economic growth, and ensure incumbents don’t get to control who gets to build — and who gets left out.

At Plaid, we know open banking is here to stay. The transparency, tools, and consumer control that define open finance are now core to how Americans engage with their money. Congress recognized this in Section 1033 of the Consumer Financial Protection Act, which guarantees that consumers can use their own data as they choose without paying a toll to institutions that hold it and treat it as their property. A strong rule will protect this consumer right, creating market certainty and fueling continued progress toward a safer, more innovative financial ecosystem.

Americans Deserve To Control Their Financial Data, Toll Free 

This week, Plaid submitted our comment letter to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) on its Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR) regarding the Personal Financial Data Rights Rule. Our message was clear: individual Americans — not institutions — must remain in control of their financial data.

People should be able to access and share their data freely and securely — without tolls or barriers imposed by incumbents that treat personal financial information as theirs to restrict.

When consumers control their data, innovation and competition thrive — benefiting individuals, businesses, and the broader economy.

Our key recommendations to the CFPB

As this Administration reexamines the 1033 rule, we urge it to stay true to Congressional intent. Through this lens here are the recommendations we laid out in our ANPR comment. 

• The CFPB must preserve access and competition by affirming that consumer-authorized third parties are covered “representatives.” 

  • Congress defined consumer to include “an individual, or an agent, trustee, or representative acting on behalf of an individual.” 

  • The ordinary meaning of representative is “one acting on behalf of another,” and Congress chose that broad term to ensure people can authorize trusted technology providers to securely access their data for specific purposes. This definition was affirmed not only by Congress, but by the 2018 Treasury report from the first Trump administration (page 31).

• When Congress intends to create or allow fiduciary duties, it does so explicitly.

• Congress never intended for consumers to have to pay a toll for their data under Section 1033. 

  • The statute requires that covered persons “shall make available … upon request” financial data to consumers and their representatives. Shall make available is not conditional. A simple request - not payment - triggers the obligation.

  • Had Congress intended to allow fees for data access, it would have explicitly said so, just as it has done in other contexts.

• The CFPB should ensure consistent, secure standards.

  • Consistent with Congressional intent, the CFPB should continue to rely on GLBA Safeguards as the common security framework.

  • In an effort to encourage the transition to APIs, the CFPB should expand the scope of data covered by the rule and encourage data providers to provide reliable APIs. Both of these will reduce the reliance on screen scraping while maintaining consumer access.

What this means for our customers and partners

Plaid remains deeply committed to security, transparency, and financial freedom. The CFPB’s rulemaking process represents an opportunity to strengthen the foundations of open finance and ensure that every American — regardless of where they bank — has access to the tools and services that best meet their needs.

For Plaid customers and partners, your integrations, services, and the protections we’ve built into our platform remain strong. The future of open banking is secure — and Plaid will continue to work closely with regulators, financial institutions, and innovators to deliver trusted, reliable data access that helps everyone participate fully in the financial system.