Limiting third-party access would undermine consumer choice, reduce competition, and stall innovation in financial services.
Contact: Laine Williams, (202) 897-4757, lwilliams@allonadvocacy.com
Washington, DC, May 30, 2025 – The Financial Data and Technology Association (FDATA) of North America, a trade association representing more than three dozen financial technology and open finance companies in the United States and Canada, today strongly rejected the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) claim that Section 1033 of the Dodd-Frank Act does not authorize consumers to share their financial data with trusted third-party applications.
This position, presented in a federal court filing aimed at vacating the Section 1033 final rule, stands in direct contradiction to the policy direction laid out in the Trump Administration’s 2018 Treasury report, A Financial System That Creates Economic Opportunities: Nonbank Financials, Fintech, and Innovation.
In that report, Treasury unambiguously recommended that: “For purposes of Section 1033, third parties properly authorized by consumers, including data aggregators and consumer fintech application providers, fall within the definition of ‘consumer’ under Section 1002(4) of Dodd-Frank for the purpose of obtaining access to financial account and transaction data.” (p. 197)
Treasury further noted that interpreting Section 1033 narrowly—applying only to direct consumer access—would “do little to advance consumer interests by eliminating many of the benefits they derive from data aggregation and the innovations that flow through from fintech applications.” (p. 31)
In other words, the Trump administration has previously asserted that third-party access is not only contemplated under the statute but is essential to achieving the law’s purpose.
“The CFPB’s new position is a complete reversal of both the statutory language and the intent that has guided policymakers across administrations,” said Steve Boms, Executive Director of FDATA North America. “The 2018 Trump Treasury clearly acknowledged that consumer-authorized third parties—such as data aggregators and fintech apps—are fully covered under Section 1033 of the Dodd-Frank Act. Attempting to alter this well-established principle now is not just legally suspect, it’s a dangerous step backwards for consumers.”
The 2018 Treasury report also identified the need to eliminate regulatory and legal uncertainty, stating:
“Treasury makes numerous recommendations that would improve consumers’ access to data and its use by third parties that would support better delivery of services in a responsible manner… The U.S. market would be well served by a solution developed in concert with the private sector that addresses data sharing, standardization, security, and liability issues.” (p. 10)
These recommendations directly counter the CFPB’s most recent posture, which seeks to limit consumer data rights and halt a rule that has been years in the making.
FDATA urges the court to uphold the final rule and preserve a regulatory framework that reflects the bipartisan and pro-consumer spirit of Section 1033. Consumer-authorized third-party access to financial data is foundational to competition, innovation, and consumer choice in financial services—and must not be discarded.