RBI cautions account aggregators against monetising data

MUMBAI: RBI has cautioned account aggregators (AAs) against monetising customer data and stressed the need to preserve neutrality in the consent-based data-sharing framework, while outlining plans to improve interoperability, standardise data formats and expand access to financial information.Speaking at Samvaad 2026, organised by Sahamati, the self-regulatory organisation for the AA ecosystem, RBI executive director Kesavan Ramachandran said data must be shared only with customer consent and strictly for the purpose authorised. “When we have a lot of data at our disposal, there is always a tendency, at least in the minds of unscrupulous users of data, to monetise it,” he said, adding that the ecosystem “will and must always guard against the monetization of data.”Ramachandran said financial data must be shared only to the extent explicitly requested and approved by customers, in line with the Digital Personal Data Protection Act. AAs must preserve the framework's data-blind architecture by not storing or decrypting customer information or transmitting it without verifiable consent. Misuse or unauthorised exposure of data could undermine the ecosystem's credibility.He also cautioned Financial Information Providers (FIPs) against withholding data when customers have given valid consent. As artificial intelligence gains ground in financial services, institutions must adopt the technology prudently and guard against security breaches.RBI is working towards full interoperability across the AA network, following the roadmap announced by the RBI Governor, Ramachandran said. Standardised technical systems would allow customers and Financial Information Users (FIUs) to exchange information seamlessly across platforms, enabling smaller AAs to compete with larger players.He described the AA framework as the fourth pillar of India's digital public infrastructure, alongside Jan Dhan-Aadhaar-Mobile (JAM), the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and the Unified Lending Interface (ULI). Together, these systems are expected to widen credit access, particularly for first-time and underserved borrowers.Depositories are also being enabled to offer customers a consolidated view of their demat and financial holdings, expanding the information available through AA integrations.Sahamati will work with Reserve Bank Information Technology (ReBIT) to standardise data formats across more than 19 financial information categories currently active in the ecosystem. This is intended to make information exchanged between FIPs and FIUs uniform, readable and usable.Ramachandran called for greater reciprocity among financial institutions, saying entities that access data as FIUs should also participate as FIPs to supply information. This would promote more balanced data sharing across banks, NBFCs and fintech companies.He said regulators and industry participants must work together to resolve operational challenges and preserve customer trust, in keeping with the consent-based principle underlying Sahamati's name.You use AI every day. Now get your AI Quotient. Take the AIQ test.