Agreement enhances access and control over the data customers choose to share with several popular financial management tools
SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) announced today it had entered into an
agreement with Intuit Inc. (Nasdaq: INTU), which allows Wells Fargo
customers who use financial management tools such as QuickBooks Online,
Mint, and TurboTax Online to use an innovative application-programming
interface (API) when importing their bank account information.
“We’re excited to work with Intuit on transforming the data-sharing
process,” said Brett Pitts, Head of Digital for Wells Fargo Virtual
Channels. “This agreement creates a much better experience for our
shared customers, gives them greater control over their financial data,
and enhances the efficiency of the data-sharing process.”
The API at the center of this new data-sharing method is designed to be
modular and flexible. This allows the API to deliver everything from
data sharing and retrieval to specialized use cases and microservices.
“The APIs that we have created for the purposes of sharing data with
firms such as Intuit are truly unique to the industry,” Pitts
underscored. “These new tools are designed to be flexible and adaptable,
while meeting the needs of the customer, the bank, and the providers of
financial management tools.”
“This agreement builds on Intuit’s track record of innovating to ensure
that consumers and small businesses benefit from access to data so that
they can take control of their financial lives,” said Tayloe Stansbury,
executive vice president and Chief Technology Officer of Intuit. “We’re
pleased to join with Wells Fargo to provide our shared customers with
greater access and control of their financial information.”
The API used in the Wells Fargo-Intuit agreement has been designed to
utilize a secure, tokenized “handshake” between the companies’ servers.
The API eliminates the need for Intuit customers who use QuickBooks
Online, Mint and TurboTax Online to share their Wells Fargo usernames
and passwords, and the need for Intuit to store them in order to
retrieve Wells Fargo account data.
“The customer has more choice and control with this new model,” said
Pitts. “Customers choose what account information they want to share
with Intuit, and, through the API, the customer’s credentials are not
used to initiate the data sharing.”
The enrollment process is easy and is designed to work seamlessly in the
Intuit user experience:
-
When Intuit customers are logged in to Mint, QuickBooks Online or
TurboTax Online and wish to set up or add a Wells Fargo account, they
will be directed to a Wells Fargo secure server to begin the
enrollment process.
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After the customer logs directly into Wells Fargo online banking,
they’re presented with a “Connect Accounts” page, where they authorize
the data they wish Wells Fargo to share with Intuit. This gives
customers control of the data they want to share.
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After confirming the account information, the customer is then
directed back to the Intuit service they’re logged in to. Data sharing
between Wells Fargo’s servers and Intuit’s servers is then done via a
unique token that identifies the customer and the customer’s accounts.
Direct bank feeds are a fundamental component of financial management
software and cloud accounting because they automate much of the
time-consuming data entry once associated with bookkeeping. By
automatically transferring data between their bank and their financial
management platform, customers save valuable time and avoid potential
data-entry errors. Direct bank feeds deliver three key benefits:
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Accuracy and Reliability: Financial data is delivered directly
from a financial institution to the management platform. This helps
ensure that information is current.
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Customer Control of Data: Customers can access their personal
and business information at any time, with their tool of choice.
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Time Savings: The need for manual data entry is dramatically
reduced because new transactions are automatically imported into the
financial management platform every time a customer logs in. Customers
can add and reconcile expenses at the click of a button.
Intuit will access Wells Fargo’s data exchange API on Wells Fargo’s
Gateway Channel developer portal, and work to integrate it into the
Intuit user experience for Wells Fargo customers by the second half of
the year. Wells Fargo’s new Gateway Channel, launched in September of
2016, offers APIs that allow commercial and corporate banking customers
to integrate Wells Fargo products, services and information into their
own digital environments.
About Intuit
Intuit
Inc. creates business and financial management solutions that
simplify the business of life for small businesses, consumers and
accounting professionals.
Its flagship products and services include QuickBooks® and TurboTax®,
which make it easier to manage small
businesses and tax
preparation and filing. Mint provides
a fresh, easy and intelligent way for people to manage their money,
while Intuit's ProConnect brand
portfolio includes ProConnect
Tax Online, ProSeries® and Lacerte®,
the company's leading tax preparation offerings for professional
accountants.
Founded in 1983, Intuit had revenue of $4.7 billion in its fiscal year
2016. The company has approximately 7,900 employees with major offices
in the United
States, Canada,
the United
Kingdom, India, Australia
and other locations. More information can be found at www.intuit.com.
About Wells Fargo
Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) is a diversified, community-based
financial services company with $1.9 trillion in assets. Founded in 1852
and headquartered in San Francisco, Wells Fargo provides banking,
insurance, investments, mortgage, and consumer and commercial finance
through more than 8,600 locations, 13,000 ATMs, the internet (wellsfargo.com)
and mobile banking, and has offices in 42 countries and territories to
support customers who conduct business in the global economy. With
approximately 269,000 team members, Wells Fargo serves one in three
households in the United States. Wells Fargo & Company was ranked No. 27
on Fortune’s 2016 rankings of America’s largest corporations. Wells
Fargo’s vision is to satisfy our customers’ financial needs and help
them succeed financially. News, insights and perspectives from Wells
Fargo are also available at Wells
Fargo Stories.
