Can you use ODBC to extract data directly from SAP HANA S/4 1610? Trying to get a handle on what's possible and what's not with SAP Hana S/4 1610.

My understanding is that one can access the underlying SAP HANA DB via ODBC simply by utilzing the SAP HANA Client which installs the ODBC Driver required. Once installed one can, from what I read, access the vast data stores that power the SAP ERP via standard ODBC calls using tools such as SSIS.

However I'm being told conflicting information from other people on if this is even possible and that what is really required is for the vendor to be in control of that process and for them to write apps in ABAP that will interrogate the underlying DB and deliver unto us flat files which our ETL process will then use.

We'll be using a locally hosted SAP HANA installation so, not on prem but no cloudy either.

Clarification: All I need here is a yes, you can connect to SAP HANA S/4 1610 via ODBC or no, you can't and another method is required.

TBH not really interested in the how either since everything else I've read online tells me that. However when you've $10bn a hour consultants saying no, one has to question reality.
Your question is a bit confusing so I hope I'm deciphering it correctly. 

Technically you can connect to a SAP HANA database using ODBC -- this is helpfully documented in the manual.

What you do after you connect is another question. The SAP ERP application schema is very complex and poorly (if at all) documented, and it is highly unlikely that you will be able to reverse engineer it and create a sufficiently reliable ETL process based on that.

So the answer I guess is "yes you can, but you don't want to".