Last week, Neonomics had the opportunity to take part in the Norway Fintech Festival, where we shared our perspectives on FIDA - one of the most important regulatory developments facing the European financial ecosystem, along with our friends Jennie Karlsen Ingstad (Finance Norway) and Henrik Sjølie (Intellitech).

While rumors have circulated about potential delays or derailments of FIDA, the reality is simple: FIDA is moving forward. However, much of the industry appears to have entered a “wait and see” mode. From our perspective, this is both risky and shortsighted. Now is the time to prepare.

The State of Play

A key uncertainty discussed at the festival is whether recent global trade developments, such as Trump's newly announced tariffs, will impact the trajectory of FIDA. Will they prompt Europe to act decisively and accelerate implementation, or will they result in the kind of bureaucratic delay that undermines confidence in European financial leadership? This is a moment for Europe to demonstrate its ability to move with speed and purpose.

From a regulatory standpoint, the biggest challenge ahead is clear: scheme structure alignment. Without alignment, the timeline for implementation could easily slip. Yet this also represents an opportunity, if the ecosystem can find common ground early, FIDA has the potential to go beyond regulatory compliance and deliver real value to both businesses and consumers.

Latest Developments from the Trilogue Process

Since the festival, we have seen further developments in the trilogue negotiations. The discussions officially started on April 2nd but are now on pause until mid or late May due to differing priorities between the Council of the EU and the European Parliament.

Some Member States are advocating for significant changes, including exemptions for large corporates and SMEs due to concerns about implementation costs. Meanwhile, Parliament, supported by NGOs such as Finance Watch, is pushing for strong consumer protections and is questioning what exactly is meant by "simplification" of the proposal. The Commission is now working on a draft “non-paper” expected in early May, which will be critical for shaping the next steps.

This pause should not be seen as a reason to slow down, but rather as a strategic window to engage, align, and prepare.

Learning from PSD2

One of the most important lessons from PSD2 is that while it opened access to payments, it did not fully unlock the broader potential of open finance. FIDA offers us another chance, not just to carve up the existing market differently, but to actually make the cake bigger. For this to happen, incumbents and fintechs must work together, aligning on how to create sustainable and scalable services under FIDA.

Our Perspective

At Neonomics, we strongly believe that now is the time for action. FIDA will happen, the question is whether the industry will be ready to capture the opportunity it brings. We encourage all players to shift from “wait and see” to actively exploring, testing, and preparing for the future of open finance.

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