Enhanced Banking Accessibility: Imposed Regulations for Banks and Fintech Entities
The Barrier-Free Strengthening Act (BFSG), a groundbreaking legislation set to come into force in Germany on June 28, 2025, is poised to revolutionise digital accessibility for people with disabilities. This national implementation of the European Directive 2019/882 (the European Accessibility Act) aims to foster equal participation in social and economic life, particularly in the digital domain.
The BFSG mandates that all products and services placed on the market after its implementation must meet binding accessibility requirements, with a particular focus on e-commerce such as websites, software, and hardware. This new law applies broadly to all economic operators who offer products or services to the public, including manufacturers, retailers, importers, and service providers.
In the financial sector, the BFSG requires services such as telephone and messenger services, e-commerce, websites, and software platforms that serve consumers to be barrier-free. This means that banking websites, online banking platforms, contact forms, and appointment booking systems will need to be accessible to persons with disabilities.
Private companies in the financial sector that provide digital services, such as banking websites or online financial services platforms, must ensure their offerings are accessible to all users from June 28, 2025 onward. Companies with fewer than 10 employees and turnover below 2 million euros are generally exempt, except if they produce products subject to the law (e.g., digital offerings).
Violations of the BFSG may result in fines of up to 100,000 euros, product bans, and lawsuits from affected individuals or associations. To ensure compliance, financial companies may need to implement speech outputs, contrasts, assistive technologies, or simplified language. The requirements also extend to payment terminals, apps, banking services, and digital services, making them understandable, accessible, and usable.
Dana Wondra, a business administration graduate and former marketing director, is a consultant and project manager at GOLT Coaching and also serves as a Senior Manager Marketing at Payment & Banking. With her extensive experience in organising events and campaigns, particularly in the context of the Olympics, Wondra's expertise is invaluable in navigating the challenges posed by the BFSG.
For more insights on the BFSG and its implications for the financial sector, tune into the latest episode of the Payment & Banking podcast, available on their blog.
- Politics and policy-and-legislation have a significant impact on businesses, as shown by the Barrier-Free Strengthening Act (BFSG) in Germany, which aims to make all digital products and services accessible to persons with disabilities, including those in the finance sector like banking websites and online financial services platforms.
- In the general news, the BFSG has implications beyond just the finance sector, as it applies to all economic operators who offer products or services to the public, mandating that all products and services placed on the market after June 28, 2025, must meet binding accessibility requirements.
- To remain compliant with the BFSG, businesses in the finance sector must take measures such as implementing speech outputs, contrasts, assistive technologies, or simplified language to ensure their digital offerings are accessible to all users, avoiding potential fines of up to 100,000 euros, product bans, and lawsuits from affected individuals or associations.
