Open Banks Directory

Thousands of banks worldwide have open APIs. In the EU, UK, Australia, and Brazil, regulations require many banks to provide APIs. In the US and other regions, adoption is growing. This directory lists banks with open APIs—filter by country or browse via API aggregators like Plaid, Tink, and TrueLayer for coverage. For the full list, use the search above or explore by country.

Open banks are banks that offer open APIs so third-party apps can securely access account data or initiate payments with your consent. They may provide a developer portal for direct integration or be reachable through API aggregators. This directory lists open banks you can search by country and filter by aggregator coverage.

Open banking apps are applications that use Open Banking APIs to connect to your bank account with your permission. They include budgeting apps, payment apps, lending platforms, and account aggregators. These apps never see your password—you authorize access through your bank. Use this directory to find open banks and API aggregators that power open banking apps.

A bank API (Application Programming Interface) allows third-party applications to securely access banking data and services. Bank APIs enable features like account aggregation, payment initiation, balance checks, and transaction history retrieval. Under regulations like PSD2 and Open Banking, many banks are required to provide APIs to licensed third parties.

To access a bank's API, you typically need to: 1) Register as a developer on the bank's developer portal, 2) Obtain API credentials (client ID and secret), 3) Get licensed as a TPP (Third Party Provider) if required by regulation, 4) Integrate using the bank's API documentation and sandbox environment for testing.

Direct bank APIs connect you to a single bank's systems, requiring separate integrations for each bank. Aggregator APIs (like Plaid, Tink, or TrueLayer) provide a unified API that connects to thousands of banks, simplifying integration but adding an intermediary. Direct APIs offer more control; aggregators offer broader coverage and faster time-to-market.

Not all banks have public APIs. In regions with Open Banking regulations (EU, UK, Australia, Brazil), banks are required to provide APIs. In other regions like the US, APIs are voluntary. Many banks without direct APIs can still be accessed through aggregator services that use screen scraping or other methods.

Not in a literal sense—the account is a record in the bank's systems. What people mean is that the bank exposes APIs that can represent those accounts: balances, transactions, and sometimes payments, under rules and consent. Retail open banking lets licensed third-party apps use those interfaces with your permission; banks also use internal APIs between their own systems and partner APIs for institutional or BaaS relationships.

Internal APIs connect a bank's own systems—for example digital banking to the core ledger or risk tools to payment processing—and are not meant for external developers. Partner APIs are contractual interfaces between the bank and specific third parties (fintechs, corporates, BaaS programs), often bespoke and governed by agreement. Open banking APIs are standardized or regulated channels for licensed third-party providers (TPPs) to access account data or initiate payments with explicit customer consent (e.g. PSD2-style frameworks). This directory focuses on banks with open-style and developer-facing APIs; internal bank APIs are usually private.

It depends which API and who is calling. In many regions (for example under PSD2 in the EU/EEA), banks must provide dedicated open banking interfaces to licensed third-party providers without charging those TPPs for that access, and consumers are not charged for consent-based use. Voluntary developer products, premium or treasury APIs, and other commercial bank APIs are often priced separately. If you integrate via an aggregator (Plaid, Tink, TrueLayer, etc.), you typically pay the aggregator even when the underlying bank open banking interface is free to licensed TPPs.

Often no. Regulated open banking APIs usually cover what standards and law require—commonly retail-oriented account information and payment initiation—not every account type or dataset the bank holds. Some business or corporate products, cash-management features, or fields may be outside the mandatory scope (for example if not required under PSD2-style rules), while proprietary or premium bank–corporate APIs expose broader or custom data under contract. For enterprise treasury needs, premium APIs or direct bank agreements are usually the right path; see our Open Banking vs Premium Banking APIs guide.

Bank APIs typically provide access to: account information (balances, account details), transaction history, payment initiation (for licensed providers), direct debits, standing orders, and beneficiary management. The specific data available depends on the API type, your licensing, and user consent.

A bank API sandbox is a testing environment that simulates the bank's production API using mock data. It allows developers to build and test integrations without accessing real customer accounts or making actual transactions. Most bank developer portals offer sandbox access for free.

Use the search and country filter on this page to list banks with open APIs by country. Select your country from the dropdown above the directory, or browse the Popular Bank APIs section for well-known examples. You can also check our country pages (e.g. Open Banking in UK, Open Banking in US) for a full list of banks and aggregator coverage in that market.

Yes. Banks with open APIs use regulated interfaces (e.g. OAuth 2.0, Strong Customer Authentication) so your credentials stay with the bank. Third-party apps receive only limited, time-bound access—they never see your password.

For more, see Is Open Banking safe? and Is API banking safe?.

Traditional banking typically meant no programmatic access—you used the bank's own app or website only. Banks with open APIs allow licensed third-party apps to access account data or initiate payments with your consent, via standardized APIs. That enables budgeting apps, instant lending, pay-by-bank, and account aggregation across multiple banks.

Yes. API aggregators (e.g. Plaid, Tink, TrueLayer) connect to thousands of banks through a single integration. Many banks that don't offer a public developer portal are still reachable via these aggregators. Use the API Aggregators section on this page to compare providers and their bank coverage by country.