Despite the positive comments here, I believe account aggregation as a stand-alone concept is dead. Customers didn't get it, saw no incremental value, and in fact were scared of it, because of having to share online sign in credentials.

However, and perhaps thats where Robert is going with his post, it will be a valid component in development of other services in the future, and it will be bank changing in its significance.

WebCPA | Tools and Resources for the Electronic Accountant – An Investcorp and SourceMedia Publication

Since a search of the Intuit Web site yields no hits for the term, "Customer Central," it's likely this technology will surface in the next year or so. But maybe it's not aggregation. TekPortal also supported online account opening and authentication services, the same things that get more attention these days at Yodlee.

We noted recently the new Yodlee service, which eliminates the "friction" that binds customers to banks today. This is a brilliant strategy, that uses aggregation to add value.

The other space I see aggregation playing, and I can see Intuit going there, is financial planning. Once you have all your customer data in one place, it can be sorted, manipulated, and analysed. The power in that concept is considerable, to develop investment plans, track success, alert for issues, and help the customer stay on track. Even more powerful if the data is shared with the customers personal broker/ banker/ financial planner, then the customer can watch the planner at work and see the results real time.

Relevance to Bankwatch:
Real and valid new services can be developed using aggregation as a component tool.

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