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The rollout allows individuals to consolidate account information from multiple banks into a single application.
If you’re a fan of fintech, then bLink, but don’t miss it.
The Swiss financial sector has formally entered a new phase of digital integration with the launch of multibanking for private customers, enabled through the open banking platform bLink from SIX.
The rollout, announced today (November 25), allows individuals to consolidate account information from multiple banks into a single application, and, with explicit consent, to share that data securely with non-bank financial apps.
The development is being presented as a major step toward an open, interoperable financial ecosystem in Switzerland—one that could reshape how consumers manage money and how financial services firms design products.
Beginning this week, customers at eight Swiss banks and two licensed third-party providers can aggregate their accounts and view balances, transactions, and spending insights in one unified dashboard. More than 30 banks now support the technical interface required for the service, and that number is expected to rise.
This access also extends to apps outside the traditional banking system, such as budgeting tools and fintech platforms. Today’s early use cases include consolidated account overviews, spending analysis, and automated budgeting. Over time, analysts expect more sophisticated services—such as personalized financial advice, automated tax preparation, and cross-bank financial planning—to develop on top of these standardized connections.
For consumers, the implications are broad. Multibanking could reduce administrative friction, make financial behavior easier to understand, and increase transparency around fees and spending patterns. It may also shift expectations of what a banking app should offer, accelerating competition among both banks and new entrants.
Swiss banks and financial institutions are signaling that this is only the beginning of a much larger transition. More banks are expected to enable data sharing through third-party apps in the coming years, while others will create proprietary multibanking tools and services.
Such developments move Switzerland closer to a truly open finance model—similar to those already advancing in the European Union and the United Kingdom, where standardized access to account data has driven a wave of fintech innovation. (UK open banking started on January 13, 2018.)
For the Swiss market, this shift could foster stronger competition, lower switching barriers for consumers, and introduce new digital services that extend beyond traditional banking boundaries.
The multibanking launch stems from a coordinated, multi-year effort involving banks, industry groups, and technology providers. The initiative began in 2022 when Swiss FinTech Innovations (SFTI) proposed a shared framework to facilitate controlled access to banking data.
In 2023, the Swiss Bankers Association (SBA) advanced the concept by coordinating a memorandum of understanding signed by numerous banks. The agreement committed participants to opening standardized account interfaces to private customers—under the strict condition that any access would occur only with explicit customer authorization.
This emphasis on consumer control and data privacy has been central from the outset. The framework is designed to ensure non-bank providers can access data in a secure, regulated, and highly controlled environment. Swiss authorities and industry groups have long emphasized that customer consent cannot be implied or bundled; users must actively choose which services can connect to their bank accounts.
Underlying the initiative is bLink, the open banking platform operated by SIX. bLink uses standardized APIs to enable secure and uniform exchange of financial data across banks and service providers. The platform employs modern encryption and permissioning tools to ensure data confidentiality and integrity.
Because bLink is being developed collaboratively with both banks and fintech companies, it is tailored to Swiss market needs rather than relying on foreign standards. This approach is expected to accelerate adoption by giving institutions a shared technical foundation and lowering integration costs.
For smaller banks and emerging fintechs, the shared platform reduces barriers to entry and allows them to launch new digital features without building complex infrastructure themselves. For consumers, it ensures consistency and clarity in how data is handled across different providers.
The introduction of multibanking for private customers could influence the direction of the Swiss financial industry. Key implications include:
While Switzerland has historically moved more cautiously than the EU on open banking, this coordinated launch suggests a shift toward proactive modernization.
Meanwhile, a cyberattack on fintech firm SitusAMC has major US banks scrambling to assess potential data exposure tied to mortgages and real estate loans.
