On an ordinary morning in Bogotá, Juan —an innovation manager at a mid-sized financial institution— checks his email and finds a proposal from a fintech offering to integrate its services through APIs. It's not the first time he has heard about open banking, but this time something is different: the proposal talks about reducing operational costs, accessing new markets, and above all, improving customer loyalty. Juan wonders: How do I actually apply this in my company? Where do I start?
This scenario is not fictional. It’s the reality of hundreds of companies in the financial sector in Colombia that are seeing how open banking is no longer a trend, but a strategic necessity. In this article, we explain how to implement open banking in Colombia, the concrete benefits it can bring to your business, and what you need to take the first step successfully.
What is Open Banking and Why Does It Matter in Colombia?
Open banking is a financial business model based on opening data through application programming interfaces (APIs). It allows authorized third parties —such as fintechs or other banks— to securely access users’ financial data (with prior consent), and offer more personalized and efficient products and services.
In Colombia, this model is rapidly advancing. The Financial Superintendence has been promoting the adoption of open technologies for years, and recently took a major step with Decree 1297 of 2022, which sets guidelines for the open finance ecosystem in the country.
According to a study by consulting firm EY, 75% of financial institutions in Latin America consider open banking key to staying competitive over the next five years (EY Global Banking Outlook).
What Are the Benefits of Open Banking for a Financial Company?
Applying open banking is not just a technological transformation. It is, above all, a strategic evolution that impacts several areas of the business:
- Greater service personalization: By accessing more user data, you can offer financial products aligned with their real behavior and not just their credit history.
- Strategic partnerships: Integrating with fintechs or tech platforms allows you to expand your portfolio without assuming all development costs.
- Better customer experience: Interoperability between services reduces friction and improves the usability of your digital channels.
- New revenue streams: You can monetize your APIs, offer account aggregation, alternative scoring, or integrated payments.
How to Start Implementing Open Banking in Your Company?
1. Assess Your Technological Infrastructure
Before opening data or creating APIs, it's essential to have a modern, secure, and scalable infrastructure. If your core banking system is monolithic or too rigid, you will need to work with a technology partner to implement an architecture based on microservices, cloud, and RESTful APIs.
Rootstack, for example, has worked with financial institutions in Colombia and Latin America to modernize their legacy systems and enable environments ready for open integrations.
2. Establish a Data Strategy
Open banking is built on trust. Therefore, it’s vital to establish clear protocols for handling, encrypting, and anonymizing data. You must also comply with Law 1581 of 2012 (habeas data) and align with the Superintendence's guidelines on informed consent and data processing.
Your strategy should include:
- Consent management.
- Protection against unauthorized access.
- Audit and traceability policies.
3. Design and Implement Your APIs
APIs are the heart of open banking. They allow third parties to securely connect to your services. It’s not just about “opening data,” but about designing a robust, well-documented interface with clear usage limits.
There are international standards such as Open Banking UK or the Berlin Group framework you can use as references to develop your APIs. It’s also recommended to implement a developer portal where third parties can test and integrate easily.
4. Build an Ecosystem of Partners
Applying open banking is not a process you should do alone. On the contrary, it’s about creating a collaborative ecosystem. Fintechs, independent developers, and other financial institutions can become your strategic allies.
Through hackathons, regulatory sandboxes, or partnership agreements, you can explore new payment, scoring, investment, or insurance solutions to integrate into your platform.
5. Measure and Scale
Like any tech initiative, open banking must have clear metrics: How many integrations have you achieved? How much have digital transactions increased? What ROI have the new enabled services delivered?
Based on these metrics, you can scale your solution and even become a data services provider for third parties, opening a new business line.
Success Stories: What Are Other Companies Doing?
Some banks in Colombia are already experimenting with open banking models. For example, Bancolombia launched its public API platform to enable integrations with payment, identity validation, and information consultation solutions. Fintechs like Movii and Nequi have based their growth precisely on these agile, user-centered integrations.
Regionally, countries like Brazil have made great progress with their open finance regulatory model, which already allows the integration of credit, insurance, and pension services. This has served as a reference for Colombia, which is in a phase of regulated and voluntary adoption, but with a clear path to mandatory implementation.
Why Work with a Tech Partner Like Rootstack?
Implementing an open banking strategy requires expertise in system integration, software architecture, cybersecurity, and regulatory compliance. At Rootstack, we’ve worked with top-tier financial institutions to build scalable, secure solutions aligned with local regulations.
Our team of developers and architects can help you:
- Design and deploy your APIs according to global standards.
- Migrate your systems to the cloud and modern architectures.
- Ensure regulatory compliance in all your integrations.
- Build a solid, user-centered digital ecosystem.
Open banking in Colombia is no longer optional, but an essential strategy for financial companies wanting to compete in a digital, open, and user-centric environment. With the legal framework evolving and a market increasingly digitized, this is the perfect moment to take the first step.
At Rootstack, we support you in designing and executing your open banking strategy. We transform your technology infrastructure into an open, secure platform ready to compete in the future of finance.
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