Bank data & compliance
Read-Only Bank Connection: Definition & Example
What Is a Read-Only Bank Connection?
A read-only bank connection lets an app view account data, such as balances and transactions, without being able to move money, make payments, or change anything in the account.
What does read-only bank connection mean?
Read-only connections are the standard way to share bank data for budgeting, income analysis, and lending decisions. The app can read what the consumer authorizes, but it has no ability to withdraw funds or initiate transfers.
The consumer usually authenticates directly with the bank or through a secure data provider, so the app itself never stores their bank username and password. The connection is represented by an access token that can be revoked.
Read-only access still involves sensitive data, so it is worth checking what is shared, with whom, and how long it is kept.
Read-only bank connection example
An applicant connects her checking account to Income Checker through a read-only link. The service retrieves her transactions to build an income report and cannot move money. Income Checker deletes the access token immediately after the data is fetched.
Related terms
- Access TokenAn access token is a credential an app receives after a user grants permission, letting it call an API on the user’s behalf, such as reading bank data, without ever handling the user’s password.
- Open BankingOpen banking is the practice of letting consumers securely share their bank account data, such as balances and transactions, with third-party apps and services they choose, usually through APIs.
- Consumer-Permissioned DataConsumer-permissioned data is financial information a consumer actively authorizes a third party to access, such as bank transactions shared through an open banking connection.
- Account AggregationAccount aggregation is collecting data from a person’s accounts at multiple financial institutions into one place, with their permission, so balances and transactions can be viewed or analyzed together.
Read-only bank connection FAQ
- Can a read-only bank connection take money from my account?
- No. Read-only access allows viewing data only. Moving money requires separate payment authorization, such as ACH authorization with your routing and account number.
