Why vendor management wasn't built for open finance

A vendor management framework assumes a relationship the financial institution chose and can fully govern. Open finance relationships are typically neither -- they exist because of consumer rather than procurement choice, run many parties deep, and are now being asked to fit inside a Third-Party Relationship Management (TPRM) framework that was never built for that volume or structure.

To close that mismatch, Heads of Third-Party Relationship Management (TPRM) should structure their approach around three connected steps:

1. Replace manual sign-off with continuous evidence: Move from point-in-time assessment to continuous, independently evidenced monitoring across the full open finance chain, so sign-off rests on current evidence rather than a dated checklist.
2. Track the entity, not just the relationship: Monitor ownership changes, new sub-processors, and licensing shifts on an ongoing basis, since these are the changes a one-time vendor review is structurally unable to catch.
3. Extend accreditation beyond the first tier: Push accreditation requirements through the chain so visibility doesn't stop at the institution's direct counterparty, closing the gap a traditional vendor framework leaves at every subsequent tier.

About Invela

Invela is the infrastructure layer that makes open finance trustworthy -- accrediting who's in the network, monitoring risk in real time, and ensuring liability lands in the right place. Open finance, covered.