Starling Bank has revealed plans to host its first hackathon, making it the first UK licenced bank to launch a public API in keeping with the ambitions of PSD2 and the Open Banking initiative.

The API enables third-parties to access customer data and build on top of the Starling platform to create products and services such as chatbots, spending analytics or connections with the Internet of Things.

Starling is also launching a new Marketplace model in March 2017, which will offer customers access to a range of financial products such as mortgages and loans directly from the mobile app.

Hackathon participants will gain early access to the developer platform and the Marketplace, along with the necessary credentials to access and start using the Starling API.

Megan Caywood, chief platform officer at Starling Bank, said: “We are really excited to be hosting our first Starling Hackathon. It is intriguing to think what ideas spring from the opportunity to access our API and Platform. We recommend that anyone applying bring their best ideas because all successful entrants to our hackathon will get to pitch and demonstrate their concept to our judging panel of tech innovators and VCs.”

The bank also posted a video on its YouTube account, demonstrating its integration with voice-activated smart speaker Google Home. Through linking its API with the smart speaker, customers will be able to complete payments and balance queries through voice commands.

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