The UK government has published its Smart Data 2035 Strategy, setting a target of five or more active smart data schemes by 2030 and 20 or more by 2035, backed by at least £36 million in public investment over four years. Under the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 (DUAA), the government now has legal powers to compel businesses to participate in these schemes – meaning mandatory data sharing obligations may be coming to numerous sectors. Businesses across banking, finance, energy, property, retail, transport, telecoms, digital markets, and agrifood may wish to begin assessing their exposure.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has separately published guidance on a specific subset of smart data schemes and price transparency schemes, which carry their own compliance implications and unintended competition and privacy law risks.
Background and Context
What Is Smart Data?
Smart data is the secure sharing of customer or business data with Authorised Third Parties (ATPs) – organisations accredited to access and use that data to provide new products and services. The best-known example is Open Banking, which now has over 17 million active users in the UK and processes more than 2 billion API calls per month. Where customer data is shared, consent is generally required; however, some schemes may require mandatory sharing of business data, such as pricing or product information, without consumer consent.
The policy objective behind smart data schemes is to unlock growth, competition, and innovation by making data more portable, standardised, and usable across the economy. By enabling secure data sharing between data holders and ATPs, the government aims to help consumers and businesses access better services, reduce switching friction, support new data-driven business models, and create the trusted digital infrastructure needed for emerging technologies, including AI.
Relevant Policy Documents
- The UK Government Smart Data 2035 Strategy (March 2026), presented to Parliament by the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, sets out the government’s sector-by-sector roadmap and investment plans for smart data through to 2035.
- The CMA Smart Data and Price Transparency Discussion Paper (August 2025) sets out design principles for policymakers and explains how a specific type of smart data scheme, price transparency (PT) schemes, can be used to improve consumer price comparison and stimulate competition.
Together, these documents signal that smart data is moving rapidly from policy concept to regulatory reality.
Key Issues
- Mandatory participation powers now exist. The DUAA gives the government the legal power to require firms in any sector to share both customer data and business data (such as pricing and product information) as part of a smart data scheme.
- Sector scope is broad and expanding. The government has identified 10 sectors for active development: banking, finance, energy, road fuels, property, retail, digital markets, transport, telecoms, and agrifood. Calls for evidence and consultations are already underway or planned for 2026 across several of these.
- Near-term regulatory milestones are set. Key upcoming steps include government consultation on Open Banking (early 2026); the UK Financial Conduct Authority’s Open Finance Roadmap (March 2026); HM Treasury next steps on Open Finance (Summer 2026); energy smart data consultation (2026); and energy regulations expected in 2027/28.
- Price transparency (PT) schemes are a distinct, lower-burden category. The CMA identifies PT schemes as a lighter-touch subset requiring only the sharing of standardised business data (not customer data), with an example being the planned Fuel Finder scheme. These schemes do not require consumer consent but do require mandatory participation for applicable businesses and compliance with data submission standards.
- A cross-sector Smart Data Guidebook is coming. The government plans to publish a Guidebook by early 2027, setting best practice and interoperability standards. This may affect scheme design across a variety of sectors and is intended to create “AI-ready” data infrastructure.
- Long-term governance arrangements are under review. A future consultation on centralised institutional functions is planned. Businesses may see the governance and regulatory landscape evolve materially before 2030.
- First-mover advantage. Businesses that engage early with government consultations and pilot programmes may be able to shape scheme design to reflect practical commercial realities.
- Access to government funding. The government is funding industry-led pilots and coalitions. Businesses with innovation capacity, particularly in fintech, energy, and property tech, might be able to access this funding.
- New revenue and service models. ATPs can build commercial services on top of data disclosed through a smart data scheme. Sectors such as financial services, property, and energy already have identified use cases with significant estimated GDP impacts (e.g., property scheme modelled at up to £28.7 billion net social value, 2028-2043).
- Reduced compliance burden through data automation. The government is actively exploring using smart data to reduce regulatory reporting burdens, for example, through automated emissions reporting for SMEs and streamlined regulatory returns.
- International trade and export opportunities. The government is working to remove barriers for UK Open Banking service providers (approximately 300 firms) operating abroad and is investing in cross-border interoperability initiatives.
- Mandatory obligations may arrive faster than expected. With regulatory powers already in place, businesses should not assume a long lead-in time. Regulations for energy, for instance, are targeted for 2027/28.
- Data quality and submission obligations. Under PT schemes, businesses must submit accurate, standardised, and timely pricing and product data. Non-compliance triggers enforcement action. Inaccurate data may also expose businesses to consumer protection law liability under the UK’s Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024.
- Competition law risk from price transparency. The CMA explicitly flags that publicly available pricing data could facilitate tacit collusion or anti-competitive information exchange between competitors. Businesses participating in PT schemes must ensure pricing disclosures do not extend to future pricing intentions and must review information exchange practices against competition law.
- Quality vs. price tension. The CMA warns that an excessive focus on price in comparison tools may reduce quality competition. Businesses may wish to document quality standards proactively to ensure they are not disadvantaged if quality metrics are added to scheme requirements later.
- Cost and system readiness. Businesses might need to build or upgrade API infrastructure to comply with data-sharing obligations. This has material IT and operational cost implications that businesses should consider factoring into their technology roadmaps.
- Consumer trust and vulnerable users. Scheme design will require particular attention to accessible and inclusive design for vulnerable customers. Businesses should consider assessing their current customer data and communication practices against this standard.
- Privacy and data protection obligations remain central. Smart data schemes do not displace the UK General Data Protection Regulation, the Data Protection Act 2018, or the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations. Where a scheme involves personal data, businesses would still need to identify an appropriate lawful basis, provide clear transparency information, apply purpose limitation and data minimisation controls, and ensure appropriate security and governance around any sharing with ATPs. In practice, this means assessing not only whether data must be shared under a scheme, but also how consent or other permissions are captured, how access can be revoked, what onward uses are permitted, and how controller/processor or independent controller responsibilities will be allocated.
- Map sector exposure. A business may wish to identify if it operates in one or more of the 10 named sectors, review the specific consultation and regulatory timelines relevant to it, and assign ownership of smart data regulatory monitoring within the company’s legal or compliance function.
- Engage with consultations. The government has explicitly invited stakeholder input on sector prioritisation, scheme design, and governance arrangements. Submitting responses to relevant calls for evidence may be a practical way to protect commercial interests and influence regulatory outcomes.
- Conduct a data and systems audit. Companies should consider assessing what customer and business data their organisations hold that might fall within scope of a smart data scheme. They might also identify the gap between their current data infrastructure and the API-based sharing standards that schemes would require.
- Review competition law compliance. Businesses might consider working with competition counsel to assess how participation in any price transparency scheme will interact with their existing pricing practices and any information-sharing arrangements with competitors or trade associations.
- Monitor the Smart Data Guidebook process. The cross-sector Guidebook, due by early 2027, will set binding best practice standards for scheme participation. Thus, businesses may wish to track its development – and engage via the refreshed Smart Data Council or directly with the Department for Business and Trade.