Spanish banking group BBVA is kickstarting the launch of its Open Banking program by making eight of its APIs commercially available for the first time.

The launch of the BBVA API Market comes after the bank spent more than a year working with developers and businesses to optimise the way the open API service would be delivered.

In opening up with APIs like this, BBVA has become one of the first major banks in the world to deliver Open Banking. Additionally, by making commercially available eight APIs, companies, startups, and developers will be able to build new products and services by accessing and integrating customer’s banking data – with their permission – into their applications.

Derek White, global head of customer solutions at BBVA, said: “By opening commercially our data and services, BBVA is turning open banking – a model that is going to speed up the transformation of the financial industry – into a reality.

“Not only are we adapting to EU standard PSD2, which aims to boost competition in the industry, but are actually aiming to become the best platform on which to build new digital experiences.”

Initially only Spanish customers of BBVA will be able to benefit from the market – but BBVA intends to roll the program out to its USA customers later this year, before expanding it further to include Turkey, Mexico, Latin America and beyond.

Companies from anywhere in the world will be able to apply to use the individual customer data sets from Spain – provided of course the customer wants them to, and gives permission. There will also be some anonymous aggregated data sets made commercially available – with the data broken down geographically or by sector.

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