Connecting European banks

Connect bank accounts across 30 EEA countries through Salt Edge and the PSD2 open banking consent flow, including 180-day consents and SCA.

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European banks connect to BankSync through Salt Edge, a licensed Account Information Service Provider (AISP), under PSD2, the EU's open banking framework. Coverage spans the full EEA: all 27 EU countries plus Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein. You search for your bank, review a short disclosure, and approve read-only access on your bank's own pages with Strong Customer Authentication (SCA). This guide covers the Europe-specific parts of the flow on top of the general Connect a bank steps.

Choose Monzo, review the consent disclosure and return to the connected bank.

Before you start

You need a BankSync account and your online banking login for the European institution you want to connect. SCA means your bank will ask for two verification factors (for example app approval plus a code), so have your bank's mobile app or token generator handy.

PSD2 keeps you in control

Access is read-only, scoped to the accounts you approve, and revocable at any time. You authenticate on your bank's own pages under SCA; your credentials never pass through BankSync, and BankSync cannot move money.

Search for your European bank#

Type your bank's name and BankSync searches every supported provider and region at once, then routes European institutions through Salt Edge automatically. The country filter defaults to your locale when it matches a supported country.

Find your institution

  1. Open the Banks page

    Select Banks from the navigation, then click the dashed "Connect a new bank" tile.

  2. Type your bank name

    Enter at least 2 characters (for example "N26", "Deutsche Bank", "BNP Paribas", or "ING"). Matching institutions appear as cards as you type.

  3. (Optional) narrow by country

    Click the filter button and pick your country. This matters for pan-European brands: "ING" in the Netherlands and "ING" in Poland are separate institutions with separate consents.

  4. Check the result card carefully

    Branded banking groups can list many member banks (for example hundreds of local Sparkasse and Volksbank institutions in Germany). Pick the exact institution you bank with.

  5. Select your institution

    Click the matching card. BankSync shows a short disclosure of what will be accessed and for how long, then opens your bank's secure consent page.

Approve access at your bank#

Authorise data sharing

  1. Review what is being requested

    The consent covers account details, balances, and transactions. It is read-only under PSD2.

  2. Complete Strong Customer Authentication

    Sign in with your bank credentials and confirm with your second factor (app approval, code generator, or SMS).

  3. Select which accounts to share

    Choose only the accounts you want BankSync to access.

  4. Confirm and return

    Approve the consent. The window closes and returns you to BankSync, which fetches your accounts.

What data European banks share#

Data typeSharedNotes
Account detailsYesAccount name, type, IBAN or identifiers for the accounts you select.
BalancesYesCurrent and available balance.
TransactionsYesPosted transactions from about 60 days before you connect, then new ones as they post. Pending transactions on request.
Account typesCurrent, savings, and card accountsWhere the bank exposes them under PSD2.

Some banks share a new transaction as pending for a few days before it is final. Feeds sync posted transactions only by default; to include pending ones, set the feed's pending handling to Sync all transactions (see Sync Transactions). A pending transaction is added once and arrives again as a separate posted row when it is final.

How far back history goes

A new connection brings in transactions from about 60 days before you connect, then keeps up with new ones. For older records, export a statement from your online banking.

Consents of up to 180 days#

Consent duration is set per bank. Since the 2023 update to the European SCA standards, most EEA banks issue consents lasting up to 180 days before a re-authentication is required. BankSync shows the expiry date on each bank's detail view and displays a renewal prompt during the final week.

Renewing takes about a minute

Open the bank in BankSync, click "Renew now" (or "Reconnect"), and complete SCA on your bank's page. Your synced history and feeds are untouched.

Confirm it worked#

You have connected your European bank successfully when:

  • The institution appears as a card on the Banks page.
  • The accounts you approved are linked to that bank.
  • The bank shows an active state, not a "Requires re-authentication" label.

With the bank connected, create a feed to sync its transactions and balances. See Create your first feed.

Troubleshooting#

Common European-bank issues

Consent expired or syncs stopped: PSD2 consents lapse at the end of their window; renew from the bank's card in BankSync. Wrong country selected: pan-European brands are separate institutions per country; connect the one for the country where you hold the account. SCA loop or failure: complete the verification in your bank's mobile app first, then retry. Bank not found: try the local-language name (for example "Caixa Geral" rather than a translation).

Next steps#

Connect a bank

The general connection flow for every country and provider.

Read guide

Manage PSD2 consents

Track expiry dates and renew or revoke access.

Read guide

Reconnect a bank

Renew a lapsed consent or re-authenticate.

Read guide

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