Ezechi Britton MBE has been appointed as independent chair of the Open Banking Future Entity Design Steering Group, taking on a role that will shape how the UK’s Open Banking infrastructure is governed and funded beyond its current form. Open Banking Limited (OBL), acting as neutral facilitator of the Future Entity Design Programme, announced the appointment on behalf of the Steering Group.
The Steering Group is the decision-making body within a broader industry-led programme established in July 2026. OBL was appointed by industry to convene participants from across the ecosystem and facilitate the process. A Working Group of over 30 funders sits beneath it, drawing from banks, data and payments-focused fintechs, technical service providers and schemes. The Steering Group holds representative membership across those same categories.
What Ezechi Britton Open Banking chair brings to the role
The Steering Group’s case for Britton rests on a career that spans software development, co-founding a fintech, and leading a government-backed innovation body. He began as a software developer before moving into advisory and c-suite roles. He co-founded Neyber, a fintech focused on financial well-being, where he served as founding CTO, according to his profile on Collectively Better.
He went on to become the founding chief executive of the Centre for Finance, Innovation and Technology (CFIT) in 2023, a body backed by £5 million of Treasury funding, according to the City of London Corporation. In his current role as chief executive officer of Collectively Better, he works with founders, corporates and ecosystem partners to build and scale ventures. He also sits on the Government’s Smart Data Council and is currently leading the working group focused on supporting private sector investment in Smart Data.
His MBE, awarded in the 2022 New Year’s Honours list for services to diversity and young people, is noted by Powerful Media in its Powerlist. The Steering Group said his experience of complex, multi-stakeholder initiatives, combined with his understanding of Open Banking and the wider Smart Data landscape, were key factors in the decision to appoint him.
A blueprint expected before the year is out
Work is already under way on a detailed blueprint and implementation plan for the Future Entity, expected by the end of the year. That plan will cover scope, capabilities, governance and funding model, with the stated aim of producing a neutral, sustainable and trusted entity capable of supporting future innovation.
The design process runs alongside the development of secondary legislation for Open Banking and is intended to contribute to the implementation of the Long-Term Regulatory Framework (LTRF), the advancement of account-to-account (A2A) payments in line with the Government’s National Payments Vision, and the broader goal of building a Smart Data economy in the UK.
Open Banking launched in January 2018 as a regulatory initiative. It has since become a core part of the UK’s financial infrastructure, underpinning payments, lending and money management across the economy. The Future Entity is intended to carry that infrastructure forward once the current governance arrangements are superseded.
Britton, speaking on his appointment, said the design work was ‘an important opportunity to build on that foundation and shape the next phase of Open Banking in a way that is trusted, resilient and capable of supporting long-term growth.’ He added that his role would be to ‘help bring participants together, support balanced discussion, and ensure the key choices around the Future Entity are worked through openly and practically,’ and that the process must reflect ‘the wider ecosystem, including organisations and users who may sit outside the formal Steering Group process.’
The Steering Group has not yet published a timeline for when it expects to put the completed blueprint to formal decision-making. The end-of-year target for the detailed plan remains the only publicly stated milestone.
