KBC is first bank in Ireland to allow users to view other banks’ balances

25 Jan 2019

Kelvin Gillen. Image: KBC

Is multi-banking the next step on the road to the multi-pass future?

KBC customers who hold an AIB or Bank of Ireland current account can now view their balance in the KBC app.

This is the first time that multi-banking capabilities have been deployed for Irish banking customers on a mobile app where users can get a complete overview of their various personal current accounts.

“Our ambition is to change the way that Irish people bank by providing instant, accessible financial products and services, with this being a big step on our journey towards achieving this,” KBC Bank Ireland’s director of transformation and innovation, Kelvin Gillen, explained.

“Customers can now check the balance of current accounts held with other financial institutions in our best-in-class digital wallet – another market first for KBC.”

Digital first

In September KBC revealed a slew of new digital-first features including instant credit card, personal digital loans and a first-to-market lost/stolen instant card replacement service.

The bank’s platform also integrates with Apple Pay, Google Pay, Fitbit Pay and Garmin Pay.

Under PSD2, all European banks are required to make current accounts and details of those accounts available to authorised third parties (banking and non-banking) at the client’s request. The EU expects these new possibilities to ultimately lead to heightened competition and innovation.

“Over the coming year we will add more features to our app to continue to pioneer innovative and intuitive ways to make banking easier and better for our customers, such as the ability to view transactions and initiate payments among others,” Gillen said.

John Kennedy is a journalist who served as editor of Silicon Republic for 17 years

editorial@siliconrepublic.com