Plaid API
Plaid API is a financial technology platform that provides secure, standardized APIs for connecting applications to users' bank accounts and financial data. It enables developers to access transaction history, account balances, identity verification, and other banking information without building direct integrations with each financial institution. The platform handles authentication, security, and data normalization across thousands of banks and fintech services.
Developers should use Plaid API when building fintech applications that require access to banking data, such as personal finance apps, investment platforms, lending services, or payment solutions. It simplifies compliance with financial regulations like PSD2 and reduces development time by providing a single integration point instead of dealing with multiple bank APIs. Specific use cases include automating account verification for onboarding, analyzing spending patterns, or enabling direct payments from user accounts.