About Open Banking
Our services are powered by Open Banking, which enables your client to safely and securely make payments and share bank details directly from their own bank.
What is Open Banking?
Open Banking allows you to safely and securely make payments and share bank account information directly from your own banking provider.
A key advantage of Open Baking is when making payments, you are not asked to enter the bank account information of the person you are making payment to manually, this is populated automatically by the service you are using (such as Safe Capital), and you simply need to check the payment amount is correct before authorising it.
You can also find out more about open banking in the Open Banking FAQs and from independent organisations such as the Government MoneyHelper service, Which? and Money Saving Expert.
Is Open Banking safe?
Open Banking uses the same technology that your Online or Mobile Banking App does, so it's just as safe.
When completing an Open Banking transaction nobody (such as Safe Capital or your law firm) gets access to your bank login details or passwords.
You enter your login details directly into your bank's system (online website application or mobile banking app) and the bank simply confirms who you are before you then go ahead to authorise the Open Banking transaction.
You are in complete control of what information you share and what payments you authorise at all times.
What do I need to use Open Banking?
To use Open Banking you need two things:
- Online access to your bank account through either a mobile banking app or your bank’s website
- Your bank must support open banking
Check out our list of banks that support Open Banking to see if it should be available to you.
What if my client doesn't have Open Banking?
If your client does not have Open Banking, we have alternative mechanisms in place to take payments or obtain bank details, so they can still use our service.
What if my firm doesn't have Open Banking?
If your firm does not have Open Banking you can still use Safe Capital to request payments and bank account details from your clients. You will be unable to make payments without an Open Banking enabled bank account.
What are the payment limits?
Open banking payment limits vary between institutions and also between account types with a given bank. For the major UK banks and building societies (Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds, Natwest, RBS, Santander, TSB and Nationwide) the payment limit for personal accounts is £20,000 - £25,000. For more information see our list of payment limits.
Open Banking Payment Limits >>
