Our outcomes report sets out the conditions participants considered necessary for open finance to improve mortgage journeys in practice.
On 8 and 9 June 2026, we brought together around 80 stakeholders and experts from across the mortgage and open finance ecosystem for a policy sprint.
The report reflects the ideas, proposals and issues explored by participants. It does not establish a final ecosystem design or represent confirmed FCA policy.
Objective of the sprint
The sprint explored the conditions needed for open finance to improve mortgage journeys in practice. Participants considered where better use of data could help consumers, and the evidence, infrastructure, safeguards and participation arrangements that would be needed to support adoption.
Why mortgages
Mortgages were examined as a priority test case in our open finance roadmap[2] because mortgage decisions draw on information held across multiple organisations and over long periods of time. Open finance could give consumers more effective ways to share relevant information and evidence at different stages of the journey, particularly for consumers who are underserved in the current mortgage market whose circumstances do not fit neatly within assessment models used in the market.
High-level findings
- Open finance could improve consumers’ mortgage journeys. Relevant information and evidence could be reused more effectively across mortgage readiness, application and remortgaging, in-life management and later-life decisions.
- The value depends on data being usable as trusted evidence. Information would need to be accurate, current and reliable, and firms would need to be able to recognise and use it appropriately.
- Common infrastructure and clear safeguards would be needed. Participants highlighted interoperability, meaningful consumer control, clear accountability and redress as important conditions for adoption.
- Adoption would depend on the wider ecosystem. Participants highlighted the need for viable commercial arrangements and broad participation. They considered how voluntary approaches, alongside potential mandatory requirements, could support consistent participation and coverage.
- Success should be measured by consumer outcomes. This includes whether consumers make informed decisions, find it easier to obtain a mortgage, receive appropriate support when needed and can understand or challenge outcomes.
Looking forward
The insights generated through this policy sprint will contribute to a discussion paper on the key enablers for open finance.
The Smart Data Accelerator[3] next phase of work will focus on the enabling architecture for data sharing and what trust infrastructure is needed to enable the safe deployment of agentic AI in a smart data ecosystem.