APIs · head to head
Akoya vs Backbase
Akoya
APIs
Bank-owned, token-based open finance network that replaces screen scraping for US financial data
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
Backbase
APIs
Digital and AI-native engagement banking platform for customer-facing banking experiences
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Akoya coverage reaches several thousand institutions but does not match aggregators that can still scrape, so applications needing the long tail of small credit unions will run a second data provider alongside it.; Backbase pricing scales with assets under management and AI API calls, meaning cost grows as the bank itself grows and adopts more AI features, which is a less predictable cost curve than a flat per-seat model.
- They diverge on capability: Akoya covers FDX standard APIs, Backbase covers Digital banking front end.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Akoya and Backbase actually diverge.
Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (quote), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (APIs).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in Akoya
- FDX standard APIs
- Token-based access
- Investment data
- Accounts, balances and transactions
- Statements and tax forms
- Customer identity
- Consumer permission management
- Single integration
Only in Backbase
- Digital banking front end
- Digital onboarding
- Customer engagement workflows
- AI-native banking OS positioning
- Core-agnostic integration
- Small business banking modules
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Akoya
- A wealth management platform that needs Fidelity brokerage holdings and tax lots, which cannot be scraped since Fidelity closed that route in October 2023not Backbase
- A tax preparation product retrieving tax forms and cost basis directly from the institution rather than asking users to upload PDFsnot Backbase
- A lender that needs a permissioning trail defensible under CFPB section 1033 rather than a credential-sharing arrangementnot Backbase
- A bank that wants to meet data sharing obligations through one network connection instead of building and policing its own developer interfacenot Backbase
Backbase
- An established bank wanting to modernise its digital customer experience without replacing its core banking systemnot Akoya
- A credit union wanting purpose-built digital onboarding and servicing workflowsnot Akoya
- A newer bank wanting an engagement layer built for AI-driven interaction from the outsetnot Akoya
- A bank consolidating several separate digital banking front ends into one platform across retail and business bankingnot Akoya
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Akoya
- Coverage reaches several thousand institutions but does not match aggregators that can still scrape, so applications needing the long tail of small credit unions will run a second data provider alongside it.
- The network is owned by large banks, so roadmap and coverage priorities reflect owner interests rather than those of the fintechs consuming the data, and a recipient has no leverage over which institutions are added next.
- Data availability is decided institution by institution, meaning a bank may expose balances but not transactions or investments, and recipients must verify field-level coverage per institution rather than assume the FDX model is fully populated.
- Pricing is unpublished and usage based, which makes it difficult to compare against aggregator pricing during a build-versus-buy decision and forces a sales cycle before you can model cost.
- The token model requires the institution to have implemented its side, so newly onboarded institutions arrive on the institution timetable, not yours, and a launch dependent on a specific bank can slip badly.
Backbase
- Pricing scales with assets under management and AI API calls, meaning cost grows as the bank itself grows and adopts more AI features, which is a less predictable cost curve than a flat per-seat model.
- It sits above, not instead of, a core banking system, so adopting it does not reduce a bank's overall vendor count or technology complexity; it adds a specialised layer.
- As with any customer-facing banking platform, an outage or performance issue directly affects the bank's customers, so the operational stakes of vendor reliability are high.
- Implementation for a large bank spans multiple modules and integration points, and realistic timelines run well beyond a simple software rollout.
- Pricing opacity means a bank cannot benchmark Backbase against competing engagement banking platforms without engaging each vendor's own sales process separately.
Pricing, plan by plan
Akoya
On request- Akoya Data Access$undefined/year
- Usage-based pricing quoted by data product and call volume
- Separate commercial terms for data recipients and for financial institutions joining the network
- No published rate card
Backbase
On request- Backbase$undefined/year
- Pricing scales with users, modules, assets under management and AI API calls
- Custom quote required, not published
Which should you pick?
Choose Backbase if
- You need digital banking front end.
- You work on Web, iOS, Android.
- You also want digital onboarding.
Questions people ask
- Is Akoya or Backbase better?
- Neither clearly leads. Akoya starts at On request and Backbase at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Akoya or Backbase?
- Akoya starts at On request and Backbase at On request.
- Does Akoya or Backbase run on more platforms?
- Akoya runs on Web. Backbase runs on Web, iOS, Android.
- What is Akoya best used for?
- Akoya is most often used for a wealth management platform that needs fidelity brokerage holdings and tax lots, which cannot be scraped since fidelity closed that route in october 2023, a tax preparation product retrieving tax forms and cost basis directly from the institution rather than asking users to upload pdfs, a lender that needs a permissioning trail defensible under cfpb section 1033 rather than a credential-sharing arrangement, a bank that wants to meet data sharing obligations through one network connection instead of building and policing its own developer interface. Of those, a wealth management platform that needs fidelity brokerage holdings and tax lots, which cannot be scraped since fidelity closed that route in october 2023 and a tax preparation product retrieving tax forms and cost basis directly from the institution rather than asking users to upload pdfs are not what Backbase is typically brought in for.
- What can Akoya do that Backbase cannot?
- Akoya covers FDX standard APIs, Token-based access, Investment data, Accounts, balances and transactions. Backbase covers Digital banking front end, Digital onboarding, Customer engagement workflows, AI-native banking OS positioning.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Akoya: Who owns Akoya?
A group of large US banks. It was spun out of Fidelity, which is why Fidelity data access runs through it.
Backbase: Does Backbase replace our core banking system?
No, it is a customer engagement layer that sits above and integrates with an existing core banking system.
Akoya: Is Akoya screen scraping?
No. It uses FDX standard APIs with OpenID Connect tokens, so credentials are never shared with or stored by the data recipient.
Backbase: How does pricing work?
It scales with factors including number of users, modules implemented, assets under management and AI API calls; exact numbers require a quote.
Akoya: Can we use Akoya alone instead of an aggregator?
Usually not. Its investment and large-institution coverage is excellent, but the long tail of smaller institutions is thinner, so most teams run both.
Backbase: Is it suited to business as well as retail banking?
Yes, it includes modules specifically for small business banking engagement alongside retail.
Akoya: Does it help with CFPB section 1033?
It is designed around it, providing tokenised permissioned access and consumer revocation rather than credential sharing.
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