Cashback programs are growing rapidly across Europe as consumers shift towards immediate financial benefits over traditional loyalty schemes.

The market is on track to grow significantly, with spending expected to more than double from US$57 billion in 2023 to US$115 billion by 2029. This growth is fueled by the demand for easy-to-use, automated solutions that make cashback more accessible and rewarding.

France is also seeing strong adoption, with 48% of consumers using cashback programs to boost their savings. As brands and financial providers aim to improve customer retention and transaction volume, open banking solutions are essential for streamlining processes, optimizing user experience, and maximizing ROI.

Recently, we sat down with Powens Group Chief Commercial Officer Nicolas Ribeaut to discuss the European cashback sector and the opportunities presented by Open Finance solutions.

Why are cashback programs such an interesting market for Open Finance?

Cashback firms rely on Open Finance to access transactional data from users’ bank accounts, enabling them to operate efficiently, comply with regulations, and scale effectively.

Before PSD2 in the EU, cashback programs were mostly confined to a bank’s internal ecosystem, such as them offering a 1% reward on utility bills paid through direct debits.

However, with PSD2 requiring banks to open access to financial data for third-party providers, cashback programs have expanded significantly, leading to new business models. Now, both B2B and B2C cashback companies leverage Open Finance to enhance their offerings.

Open Finance technologies enable these businesses to scale more efficiently, creating smarter cashback programs and rolling out advanced financial services like BNPL.

Compliance in regulated markets like the EU requires proper licensing and infrastructure, leading many firms to partner with providers like Powens. B2B cashback firms analyze transaction data for banks and fintechs, while B2C firms offer apps that allow consumers to link their accounts and earn cashback.

Open Finance is essential for both, ensuring access to financial data while maintaining regulatory compliance.

You’ll like to read: How CCD2 Impacts BNPL Providers – And How Open Banking Can Help

How Do Different Cashback Models Work?

Cashback companies fall into two categories: B2C and B2B.

B2C firms are the most recognizable to consumers. In customer-facing apps from companies like Joko and Naomi, users link their bank accounts via two-factor authentication (2FA) and earn rewards for purchases made at eligible merchants. These firms analyze transaction data to identify qualified purchases, awarding points redeemable for cash, gift cards, or other benefits.

Conversely, B2B firms don’t interact directly with consumers. Instead, they provide analytical engines to banks and fintechs, helping them monetize financial data by offering cashback rewards or selling relevant data to merchants.

Both models depend on Open Banking to access transaction data, creating a cycle where customers earn rewards, merchants increase loyalty, and cashback firms profit by optimizing financial data analytics.

What challenges do cashback programs face?

Data access is a core requirement for any cashback program, making it essential for firms to streamline the process of obtaining user consent. Cashback firms must also address the challenge of renewing consent after 180 days, the typical validity period under PSD2.

User acquisition for any cashback program tends to be costly. As such, ensuring high user sign-up conversion and retention rates is essential and one of the biggest challenges.

Additionally, fraud prevention is a key concern, as some users attempt to game loyalty systems by claiming rewards multiple times or creating duplicate accounts. Open Finance providers like Powens can help mitigate fraud risks by verifying identity details, names, and IBANs.

Why is Powens an excellent fit for cashback programs?

As a licensed and fully compliant Open Finance provider, Powens helps cashback companies like Joko, Naomi, and Macadam tackle the above challenges and more.

• Ensuring high user sign-up rates:

Over the past 12 months, we have maintained a 92% success rate for connection creations and a 99% success rate for connection updates—both industry-leading figures. We also help cashback companies refresh transactional data, which is crucial for delivering a seamless cashback experience.

• Extensive European coverage:

Powens provides broad coverage across Europe, including France, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Germany. We maintain nearly 2,000 tested connectors and can process up to five million connections daily.

• Superior UX and easy integration:

Our API-first platform enables seamless user experiences, quick account connections, and smooth processing of strong customer authentication (SCA). Additionally, we provide a best-in-class developer experience, ensuring easy and efficient product implementation.

• Optimizing consent renewals:

Powens offers a feature that anticipates the 180-day consent renewal, allowing clients to send timely reminders via email, SMS, or other channels before consent expires.

• Compliance, security, and stability:

We comply with PSD2 regulations, simplifying compliance for our partners while ensuring stable, secure data access.

You’ll like to read: EU Fintech Regulations 2025: Six Key Changes You Need to Know

Experience cashback at Powens

At Powens, our Bank solution allows cashback companies to automatically detect eligible transactions across a wide range of partner merchants. Meanwhile, our Account Check solution simplifies the verification of users’ bank account ownership.

We also perform daily synchronizations to keep transactional data up to date and manage consent renewals efficiently.

Contact Powens today to get started.

Leyla Vivanco