The equivalency principle is: A customer’s ability to direct their bank to share data and/or initiate payments using open banking API actions should be consistent with that customer’s existing Account Operating Authority and bank terms and conditions.
Note: The counterfactual to the equivalency principle is designing a rules or standards based approach that establishes a separate regime for managing accounts in open banking scenarios, which will likely deviate from some equivalent practices or precedents.
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Disclaimer
The Equivalency Principle Policy guidance document (Equivalency policy) has been prepared for the sole purpose of providing indicative information and is for general purposes only. The policy has no legal status and is not binding on any party. The Equivalency Policy should be treated as a general guide or a starting point only. The Equivalency Policy is not specific advice, nor is it a standardised approach for the industry. It does not contain all the information that an API Standards User may need for the purpose of designing and using API Standards enabled products or complying with the API Centre Terms and Conditions (API Terms).
Adoption of the Equivalency Policy does not affect or replace API Standards Users’ obligations as set out in the API Terms. API Standards Users must independently ensure that they comply with the API Terms. To the extent that the Policy conflicts with the API Terms, the API Terms prevail.
The API Centre does not make any express or implied warranty, guarantee or representation regarding the Equivalency Policy, including, without limitation, warranties that the Equivalency Policy is fit for the purposes required by API Standards Users, Customers or Permitted Users, that compliance with the Equivalency Policy assures compliance with the API Terms, or will ensure that any party might meet the standard of care required of them at law, or that any of the assumptions underlying the Equivalency Policy are accurate.