Germany leads EU push to block Big Tech from financial data access system

Big Tech companies are on course to be shut out of a new European Union market for financial data, despite warnings from Donald Trump that he will penalize countries that “discriminate” against US firms with higher tariffs. 

With Germany’s backing, EU negotiators are steering toward rules that would bar Meta, Apple, Google and Amazon from accessing a system meant to let third parties share bank and insurance data to build consumer finance tools.

A move to block the US platforms from the Financial Data Access (FiDA) framework would mark a win for Europe’s banks as they try to fend off a powerful class of rivals. Lenders fear the tech groups could use troves of customer information to stand between banks and their users, capturing much of the value that comes from insight into spending and saving habits.

Talks on FiDA are nearing completion

Talks on FiDA have dragged on for more than two years and are now nearing the finish line, diplomats said, with technology giants facing near-certain defeat in the coming weeks. 

“This is one file where the Big Tech players are actually losing the lobbying fight,” one diplomat from the EU said.

The original plan for FiDA was to let licensed third-party providers pull data from insurers and banks to launch services like tailored financial advice. 

But Europe’s financial sector pushed back hard, arguing that allowing digital gatekeepers into the system would risk “exploiting sensitive data” held by European institutions and “strengthen any dominant position.” Those concerns gained traction in the EU parliament, the European Commission and key capitals, including Berlin.

Germany set out its position in a paper circulated to other nations in the EU, according to the Financial Times. It urged an explicit ban on Big Tech participation “to promote the development of an EU digital financial ecosystem, guarantee a level playing field and protect the digital sovereignty of consumers.”

Member states and the parliament aim to seal a compromise on the final legal text this autumn. Any decision to exclude the US platforms could reopen transatlantic trade strains weeks after Washington and Brussels struck a trade deal in July. Trump mentioned several times that he would hit back with retaliatory tariffs if foreign digital taxes or regulations single out US technology firms.

Trump has already threatened retaliation over discriminatory taxes on US tech firms

In an earlier post on Truth Social, Trump attacked “Digital Taxes, Legislation, Rules, or Regulations” and warned he could add new levies and tighten export controls on US technologies. 

“As the President of the United States, I will stand up to Countries that attack our incredible American Tech Companies. Digital Taxes, Digital Services Legislation and Digital Markets Regulations are all designed to harm, or discriminate against, American Technology,” Trump wrote. “They also, outrageously, give a complete pass to China’s largest Tech Companies. This must end, and end NOW!”

In recent trade talks with Europe, Washington has also targeted the EU’s Digital Services Act, a law that compels major online platforms to tighten oversight of illegal content and harmful activity.

Industry groups aligned with the US platforms say consumers will suffer if FiDA shuts out global tech firms. They argue the plan’s founding idea was to let people control their own financial data and unlock a wider range of low-friction services.

“FIDA’s original vision was to give people control over their own data and access to better, more innovative financial services,” Daniel Friedlaender, head of Computer & Communications Industry Association Europe, said. 

“By bowing to incumbent banks, the EU is going to limit consumer choice and entrench legacy players who already hold ‘gatekeeper’ power over customer data.”

Kay Jebelli of the Chamber of Progress, another US-based tech advocacy group, delivered a similar warning. “Big banks are the current gatekeepers here, not the digital platforms. Discriminating against US tech companies would not only deny Europeans new digital services, it would also stoke transatlantic tensions.”

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