Finovate Blog

With Intuit Financial Data Services leaving the data aggregation scene last spring, we knew it would be only a matter of time before former rivals rose to take advantage of the new opportunity. Today we learn that one of those companies, Finicity, has inked a major data aggregation deal with Wells Fargo that will enable its customers’ data to be shared by financial apps and services from Finicity.

The partnership is the first of its type between Wells Fargo and a data aggregation provider and is believed to be a boon for fintech app developers who will be able to access Wells Fargo “customer-permissioned data” via Finicity’s APIs. Finicity CEO Steve Smith said the agreement is part of his company’s plan to “continually implement strategies that ensure the highest levels of data quality, speed, and uptime in our industry.”

Pictured (left to right): Finicity’s Jessie Morris (Director, Software Development) and Nick Thomas (EVP, Co-Founder) demonstrating Finicity Data Services at FinovateSpring 2015.

In addition to speed, quality, and uptime, enhanced security is another benefit of the agreement. By using direct authorization via Wells Fargo and tokenized access for any additional authentication, the user does not have to provide verification credentials through third-party apps. In the words of Head of Digital for Wells Fargo Virtual Channels, Brett Pitts, “(this) creates a much better experience for our customers … (allowing them) to choose where and how to use their financial data, while also maintaining the privacy of their user credentials.” Finicity says that the technology is expected to be in place over the summer.

American Banker’s Penny Crosman referred to the deal as part of a “data detente” in which banks and fintech companies are increasingly seeing each other more as potential partners than rivals to be disrupted. She noted that the current deal between Wells Fargo and Finicity “is the latest, but is likely not the last” for either firm. Finicity will access Wells Fargo’s data exchange API via the company’s Gateway Channel developer portal unveiled last year.

Founded in 1999 and headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, Finicity demonstrated its Data Services at FinovateSpring 2015. The company is also fresh off its latest FinDEVr appearance where EVP and co-founder Nick Thomas and Software Development Director Jessie Morris presented “The Frictionless Aggregation Experience” highlighting the new Finicity Connect drop-in UI widget. In December, Finicity scored a $42 million Series B led by Experian.