# Open Banking, Explained Simply: What It Allows, What It Doesn't, and How to Revoke

> What Israel's open-banking framework lets you do, how consent works, what a financial information service can and cannot see, and how to revoke access at any time.

- Canonical URL: https://www.shavve.io/en/articles/open-banking-explained-simply
- Category: Open banking
- Published: 2026-09-12 · Updated: 2026-10-13
- Reading time: 7 min
- Language: English
- Shavve - שווה — https://www.shavve.io/en

## The short version

- Open banking lets you instruct your bank to share your data with an authorised provider, without giving it your password.
- Consent is yours: you choose what to share, and you can withdraw it.
- A financial information service is read-only. It does not move money.
- Connect only a licensed, supervised provider, and never send a bank password in chat or by phone.
- You can revoke access in two places: with the service provider and with your bank.

It used to be that to see all your money in one place you had to copy numbers into a spreadsheet or hand someone your bank password. Open banking changes that: instead of passing a password, you instruct your bank to share specific information with an authorised provider, with your consent, and you can withdraw it.

## What it is, and how you connect

Israel has a Financial Information Service Law, which regulates who may receive customers' financial data, under the supervision of the Israel Securities Authority. In practice, connecting looks roughly like this:

1. **Choose what to connect** — A bank account, a credit card, or another product. You can connect only some.
2. **Go to your bank or financial institution** — Authentication happens at the bank itself, with your usual identification method, not with the information service.
3. **Approve the consent** — The bank shows what information will be shared, with whom and for how long. Data only starts to flow after you approve.
4. **See the picture** — The data is refreshed and displayed in the app, read-only.

## What an information service can and can't see

**What Shavve can see**
- Only what you chose to connect and approved.
- Information such as transactions, balances, cards, loans, and pension and savings products, depending on the connection type.
- Information from connected sources only, with no estimates.
- Data used to show you a picture, compute a total and spot patterns.

**What Shavve cannot do**
- Transfer, withdraw or pay money from your accounts.
- Change standing orders, or open and close accounts.
- See accounts you haven't connected.
- Know your bank password, because authentication happens with the bank.

> **Key point — Read-only**
> This is the core principle. A financial information service displays, explains and compares, and it doesn't move money. Shavve holds a financial information service license under Israel Securities Authority supervision, and its access to your accounts is read-only.

## Consent: what to check along the way

> **Tip — Before you press Approve**
> Read your bank's consent screen: who is asking for access, what type of data, and for how long. If something is unclear, or the party asking isn't who you expected, stop.

## How to revoke

1. **In the service provider's app** — In the connection settings you can disconnect a source, or delete your account and data. The exact action depends on the app.
2. **At your bank** — There is usually an area on the bank's site or app that lists active consents and lets you cancel each one.
3. **Check it worked** — After revoking, confirm the connection no longer shows as active and that data is no longer refreshing.

> **Watch out — Red flags**
> Never send a bank password, a one-time code or card details in a message, a chat or on a phone call, even if the person claims to be from the bank or an information service. Connecting to an authorised provider happens on your bank's own authentication screen. Check with the authority that the provider is actually authorised.

**Check before you connect an information service**

- [ ] The provider is licensed and supervised, and I can verify it.
- [ ] Authentication happens on the bank's screen, not by typing a password into the app.
- [ ] Access is read-only.
- [ ] I chose to connect only what I need.
- [ ] I read the consent screen: who, what and for how long.
- [ ] I know where to revoke: with the provider and with the bank.

**Can the information service take money from my account?**
No. A financial information service is read-only. Shavve doesn't move money and can't perform actions on your accounts.

**Do I give Shavve my bank password?**
Authentication happens with your bank, using your identification method, rather than by handing a password to the app.

**What if I only want to connect some accounts?**
You can. You choose what to connect, and Shavve shows only what you connected.

**Can I cancel at any time?**
Yes. You can disconnect a source in the app, and also revoke the consent at the bank itself.

**How do I know a provider is really authorised?**
Check with the supervising authority, and don't rely on the provider's own claim. If you can't verify it, don't connect.

**One clear picture of all your money** Shavve connects banks, cards, pensions and investments, read-only, and only what you choose. Join the waiting list.

## Sources

- [gov.il: Israeli government portal](https://www.gov.il)
- [Bank of Israel](https://www.boi.org.il)