The not-for-profit trade body the Prepaid International Forum (PIF) carried out research just after the start of Open Banking in the UK.

This revealed that many customers – especially younger people – said they were happy to give permission to companies such as Apple and Google to gain financial benefits or better insights into how they manage their money.

Some 34% of respondents aged 18-24 said they would be happy to give permission to a company, such as Apple, with 30% saying that they would trust Google.

Just under a quarter of people aged 65 or older (24%) said they would provide Apple with permission.

“Smartphones and search engines have become essential tools for everyday life and this research shows that people are now willing to consider adding Open Banking to the list of services that such devices help to improve,” said Alastair Graham, spokesperson for PIF (pictured above).

“Mobile devices already offer many payment services, often using the prepaid platform to facilitate simple and secure transactions.

“To many people, adding Open Banking feels like a small step.”

Suresh Vaghjiani, managing director at Global Processing Services, added: “We work with many fintechs, helping them to innovate and launch truly innovative products and services that are making a real difference.

“Now with the opportunity to access the banks' APIs, I am sure we'll see even more innovations that rapidly translate into benefits for customers.”