Finance Aggregator – What Is It? Open Banking, PSD2, and the Future of Money Management

You have accounts at two banks, a credit card, a brokerage account, an IKE, PPK, and maybe some crypto on an exchange. To see the full picture of your finances, you need to log into 5-7 different platforms. Sound familiar?

A finance aggregator solves this problem. It's a tool that collects data from all your financial accounts and presents them in a single, clear interface. And this isn't science fiction – it's technology available right now, backed by European regulation.

What Exactly Is a Finance Aggregator?

A finance aggregator (also called an account aggregator) is an application or platform that:

1. Connects to your accounts across different banks and financial institutions
2. Retrieves transaction data – operation history, balances, account details
3. Presents a complete picture of your finances in one place
4. Analyzes and categorizes transactions, creating reports and visualizations

Imagine a dashboard where you can see simultaneously: your mBank balance, ING savings account status, XTB portfolio value, your IKE balance at Bossa, and your PPK status. Everything on one screen, updated automatically.

Open Banking – A Revolution That Doesn't Get Enough Attention

What Is Open Banking?

Open banking is a concept where banking data belongs to the customer – not to the bank. The customer has the right to share their financial data with trusted third-party applications, and the bank is obligated to deliver that data through a secure API (Application Programming Interface).

Before open banking, banks were data "fortresses." Your transaction history, balances, spending patterns – everything was locked inside the bank's system. The only way to access it was logging into that specific bank's online platform.

Open banking breaks this information monopoly.

How Does It Work Technically?

1. The customer gives consent – you authorize a third-party app (e.g., an aggregator) to access your account data
2. The app connects to the bank's API – using standardized, secure interfaces to retrieve data
3. The bank verifies identity – through Strong Customer Authentication (SCA)
4. Data is transmitted – the app receives information about balances, transactions, and account details
5. Consent is renewable and revocable – you can withdraw access at any time

Crucially: the third-party app never learns your bank password. Authorization happens directly in the banking system, and the app only receives an access token.

PSD2 – The European Directive That Makes It Possible

What Is PSD2?

PSD2 (Payment Services Directive 2) is a European Union directive from 2015 (implemented in 2018-2019) that regulates payment services across Europe. Two key elements of PSD2 are:

1. Account Information Service (AIS)

Banks must provide an API through which licensed third parties can (with customer consent) retrieve account information: balances, transaction history, and account details.

2. Payment Initiation Service (PIS)

Licensed entities can (with customer consent) initiate payments from the customer's bank account. This enables, for example, payments in online stores without card network intermediaries.

PSD2 in Poland

PSD2 was implemented in Poland in 2019. Polish banks are required to provide APIs compliant with the Polish API standard (developed by the Polish Bank Association / Związek Banków Polskich) or another European standard (Berlin Group, Open Banking UK).

Implementation status in 2026:

• Most major banks (PKO BP, mBank, ING, Santander, Millennium, Pekao) have functioning APIs
• API quality and stability varies between banks
• Some banks implement APIs at the minimum required level, limiting functionality
• Work is underway on PSD3 – the next version of the directive, expanding the scope of open banking

PSD3 and FIDA – What's Coming Next?

The European Union is working on new regulations:

PSD3/PSR (Payment Services Regulation) – will replace PSD2, unifying regulations as a directly applicable regulation across EU countries (no national implementation required).

FIDA (Financial Data Access) – will extend open banking to data from insurance, investments, pensions, and loans. This will be true "open finance" – not just bank accounts, but a complete financial picture of the customer.

How Do Finance Aggregators Work in Practice?

The Account Connection Process

1. In the aggregator app, you select your bank
2. The app redirects you to your bank's login page
3. You log into your bank (with your password, PIN, or biometrics)
4. The bank asks for consent to share data
5. You confirm – data starts flowing to the aggregator
6. You repeat the process for each bank/institution

What Data Does the Aggregator See?

Typically: account numbers, balances, transaction history (descriptions, amounts, dates), and card information. The aggregator does not have access to: your bank password, card PIN, or credit limits (unless the bank exposes those through the API).

Security

• Aggregators must hold a KNF license (Polish Financial Supervision Authority) as an AISP (Account Information Service Provider)
• Data is transmitted with end-to-end encryption
• Compliance with RODO/GDPR – your data is protected by European data protection regulations
• Strong Customer Authentication (SCA) – the bank verifies your identity with each access
• You can revoke consent at any time

Benefits of Using a Finance Aggregator

1. Complete Financial Picture

Instead of logging into multiple banks and platforms, you see everything in one place. Total balance, total liabilities, total net worth. This enables better financial decisions.

2. Better Expense Categorization

An aggregator analyzes transactions from all accounts simultaneously. If you pay by card from one bank and by BLIK from another, the aggregator sums all food spending – regardless of payment source.

3. Detecting Inefficiencies

You can spot redundant subscriptions, duplicate charges, and unused accounts. An aggregator might suggest: "You have 15,000 PLN sitting in a zero-interest current account – consider moving it to a savings account."

4. Financial Planning

With complete data, you can better plan: budgets, savings, investments, debt repayment. A runway calculator (how long your savings will last) requires knowing both expenses and savings – an aggregator provides both.

5. Time Savings

Instead of 30 minutes logging into and checking 5 platforms, you spend 2 minutes reviewing a dashboard.

Finance Aggregators Available in Poland

Kontomierz / Finfrog

One of the first aggregators in Poland. Connects to many Polish banks and categorizes transactions. Free in the basic version.

Freenance

A platform combining financial aggregation with goal planning and calculators. Freenance integrates data from bank and brokerage accounts, providing a complete picture of assets and liabilities in one place. It stands out with its holistic approach to financial management – not just "how much you spend," but "where you're heading financially."

Bank Apps with Multi-Banking

Some banks themselves offer aggregation features: mBank allows you to add accounts from other banks within its app. This is a limited form of aggregation, but convenient for that bank's customers.

International Platforms

Revolut, Plaid (as infrastructure), TrueLayer – while some of these aren't directly available as consumer apps in Poland, they serve as the infrastructure on which Polish solutions are built.

Concerns and Myths About Aggregators

"I'm afraid to share my banking data"

A natural concern. Some facts:

• A licensed aggregator is supervised by KNF – just like a bank
• Data is transmitted through the bank's secure API, not through screen scraping
• The aggregator doesn't know your bank password
• You can revoke access at any time
• GDPR regulations protect your data

"Can the bank refuse to share data?"

Under PSD2 – no. The bank is obligated to share data with a licensed AISP. In practice, technical issues (unstable APIs) can occur, but formally the bank cannot refuse.

"Can an aggregator make transfers from my account?"

Only if it holds a PIS (Payment Initiation Service) license and you give separate consent. Simply connecting an account in AIS (information) mode does not give the aggregator the right to initiate payments.

"What if the aggregator goes bankrupt?"

Your money stays in your bank accounts – the aggregator doesn't hold it. If the aggregator shuts down, you lose dashboard access, but not your money.

The Future of Finance Aggregation

Open Finance

The next step after open banking is open finance. The FIDA (Financial Data Access) regulation will extend the data-sharing obligation to:

• Insurance companies (policies, claims)
• Pension funds (PPK, PPE, OFE)
• Investment firms (portfolios, transaction history)
• Leasing and factoring companies

Imagine an aggregator that shows not just bank balances, but also the value of your insurance policies, PPK status, investment portfolio, leasing installments, and credit obligations – all in one dashboard.

AI-Driven Insights

Aggregators with access to complete financial data are ideal candidates for artificial intelligence applications:

• Spending prediction – "This month you'll likely spend 3,200 PLN on food (15% above your average)"
• Optimization – "Moving 20,000 PLN from your current account to a deposit at Bank X would earn 800 PLN annually"
• Anomaly alerts – "A 2,500 PLN transaction at an online store at 3:00 AM – was that you?"
• Personalized advice – based on your financial patterns

Embedded Finance

Financial data aggregation will become embedded in other services:

• Mortgage applications with automatic financial history sharing
• Insurance tailored to your spending profile and lifestyle
• Financial advisors with instant access to your data (with your consent)

How to Start Using an Aggregator

1. Choose a platform – verify it holds a KNF license and supports your banks
2. Connect your main account – start with one bank to test it out
3. Add more accounts – once you build confidence, add remaining banks and platforms
4. Configure categories – customize expense categorization to your needs
5. Set up alerts – notifications for budget overruns, large transactions
6. Review regularly – a dashboard only makes sense if you use it

Summary

Finance aggregators are the natural evolution of money management in the digital age. Thanks to PSD2 regulations and the coming open finance framework, accessing a complete picture of your finances is becoming simpler and safer than ever.

If you have more than one bank account (and statistically you have at least two), an aggregator saves time and helps you make better decisions. It's not a question of "whether," but "when" you'll start using one.

The future of personal finance is full transparency and control – your data, your decisions, your money. Finance aggregators are a key piece of that puzzle.