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Building a mobile solution is a challenge in and of itself, and paired with the complex world of finances, fintech app development becomes quite tricky. The financial industry is notorious for rigorous regulations and guidelines. And for a good reason—these companies are dealing with highly sensitive data that should be strictly safeguarded. How can you make a fintech app that appeals to your user base and provides convenience and simplicity? In this article, we will extensively discuss fintech application development, essential features and requirements, and important trends in the fintech industry.
Financial technology, or fintech, is an industry that unifies finance with technology and allows users to perform various financial activities using mobile apps. From simply checking your account balance to trading, lending, and trading, fintech encompasses a wide range of services.
In recent years, fintech has completely transformed business, personal finances, eCommerce, and many other sectors. Offering convenience and flexibility to users, fintech has become an integral part of our lives.
Successful fintech app development is a service aimed at delivering high-quality secure mobile solutions to financial companies and institutions. Through a combination of software engineering, user experience design, cutting-edge technologies, and financial prowess, IT agencies create functional fintech apps.
McKinsey’s research reveals that the fintech industry is expected to grow two and a half times faster (15%) compared to traditional financial institutions (6%) between 2022 and 2028. Despite the pandemic, fintech application development is still on the rise, making its way into other sectors. While our shopping habits change from brick-and-mortar to online, digital payment processing is gaining momentum.
People’s perception has also undergone a big transformation. Nowadays, users aged 18 to 34 trust in fintech considerably more than in traditional banks. Not to mention that those without government-issued IDs struggle to open a conventional bank account and resort to mobile payments.
With the market growing and adopting new technologies, there is no time better than today to jump on that train. If you want to build a fintech app, keep on reading to learn all the ins and outs of the industry and the process.
Fintech mobile app development encompasses a wide range of solutions, from personal finance and investment apps to tax and lending apps. In this section, we will go over the most common types of fintech solutions.
A mobile banking app is a digital product that allows users to connect to their bank accounts and execute various operations. From managing your funds and making transfers to generating reports and contacting customer support, online banks are essential in our daily lives. What in the past required a trip to the bank can now be done from mobile devices in just a few clicks.
Another popular fintech app is an online transfer solution that allows people to make and receive payments. Tools like PayPal, Wise, and Payoneer are widely used across the globe to send money to friends and family and even for professional services. This simplifies money transferring and eliminates the complexity of interbank connections.
Conventional trading requires a lot of experience and considerable wealth in order to create an investment portfolio. Modern trading apps have democratized the industry by offering advanced robo-advisers. These robots cost a fraction of what investment managers charge and help users trade without in-depth knowledge.
Risk assessment is among the most challenging factors in the insurance business. Using big data and AI, companies can accurately calculate the risks and tailor insurance policies to individual customers. Additionally, insurance apps ensure foolproof compliance with all regulations, thus protecting both firms and customers from legal issues.
Nowadays, people seek more control over their budgets and strive to autonomously manage their finances. Personal finance apps are solutions that help users make more informed and data-driven decisions about their money. Using budgeting apps, people can gain a comprehensive overview of their spending habits, choose saving goals, and improve their money management techniques.
The peer-to-peer lending market is expected to grow 26.6% in the next years and exceed $500 billion by 2028. Platforms for microfinancing and P2P allow users to make purchases without getting bank loans. Unlike traditional loans, these tools provide more flexibility and offer smaller sums to help users swiftly solve their money issues.
Taxes are by far the most complex and intricate task that self-employed workers need to master. Depending on their job, marital status, expenses, and a slew of other factors, the tax bracket may change from one year to another. Tax management systems allow users to simplify and streamline the process and pay their own taxes without hiring expensive accountants.
Cryptocurrency has taken the world by storm and continues to be a part of the conversation. While crypto empowers people to protect their assets from inflation, send easy transfers, and invest, exchange platforms make this possible. Crypto exchange applications allow users to deposit fiat currency and purchase any crypto they want.
As more and more people rely on fintech apps to do their taxes, manage budgets, and make transfers, it’s a good idea to invest in fintech mobile app development. Various solutions are being widely adopted by banks, insurers, corporations, and eCommerce businesses to deliver convenience, security, and better user experience.
In conjunction with cutting-edge technologies like AI, ML, and big data, companies can improve personalized experiences. Furthermore, businesses leverage next-generation tech to offer accurate forecasts and help individuals and organizations manage their finances.
Fintech app development is also a driver for improved user experience. By providing access to users’ accounts and portfolios 24/7 and implementing chatbots, businesses can empower users.
Fintech merges technology with the financial industry, making it a unique and tricky combination. Alongside typical app requirements, fintech apps demand specific obligations that we will discuss next.
The reason why fintech app development is so challenging is an elevated risk of cyberattacks. When you’re dealing with personal and financial information, you are becoming a huge target for cybercriminals. However, with the right best practices and standards, you can safeguard the company’s and user data from people with bad intentions.
Make sure you’re integrating important safety measures such as multi-factor authentication, fingerprint or face recognition security, and one-time password login (OTP). Additionally, run penetration tests to ensure your system is protected. These tests will expose your weak spots and allow you to patch them up before a cyberattacker exploits the vulnerability.
Robust API management is crucial when you’re using APIs to connect your app to third parties. For example, you’re offering an additional option for money transfer to enrich your functionality. Tethering PayPal to your application will require relying on an API which can potentially expose you to risks. Whenever the partner you choose gets a data breach, this can pose a threat to your data as well.
This is why it’s vital to be hypervigilant when selecting the right company. Make sure your fintech app development partner complies with security standards, performs regular audits, and values the importance of cybersecurity posture.
Finance is an extremely complex subject that requires a lot of expertise and knowledge. When building a fintech app for regular users, make sure your solution is usable and comprehensible to them. An ideal app is easy to understand and use with a short learning curve that doesn’t demand a degree in finances. Deliver simple navigation, responsive design, and inclusivity for non-specialists.
Even if you aim at simplicity, finances are sometimes inherently complicated and confusing. Provide 24/7 customer support to help your users navigate the fintech app. Chatbots are a more cost-effective solution that can answer common questions and filter out the backlog. More complex queries can be delegated to human support to offer in-depth assistance.
Aside from data privacy laws that any business has to comply with, fintech app development has an added challenge of financial standards. Depending on your location and business model, you may need to be wary of various laws and regulations. For example, when dealing with cardholder data, you need to adhere to the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI-DSS). Financial companies in the UK are expected to comply with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
Although you can expand your app however you want, there are specific features that are essential for any fintech app. Let’s dive into the must-have features of fintech applications.
Allow your users to open and set up an account in as few steps as possible. A lengthy sign-up process may result in people abandoning registration before it’s complete. However, make sure the process is still secure and compliant with all the regulations.
The personal account function is another important detail. This feature should be simple yet versatile and allow users to customize their experience.
Regardless of the type of the fintech app you build, it needs payment gateways to perform transactions. From online payment systems like PayPal to card payment processing, make sure your app is usable and diverse.
Simplify user experience and help your customers comprehend complex finances by generating dashboards. You can also enable customization and allow users to focus on metrics that are most important to them.
One of the main reasons for using fintech apps is to receive tailored advice on money management. Learn your customers’ goals and needs to create personalized tips that will help them achieve their objectives.
Include a feature that allows users to retrieve the history of their transactions and other interactions within the application. The information should include details like the date and time, amount of transaction, and type of interaction.
Users should be able to enable or disable notifications depending on the action. While most people would like to be informed whenever a transfer takes place, other transactions may not be as urgent to them. Make sure notifications are customizable and don’t overwhelm users with too much data.
In order to support the user during the onboarding process and throughout the usage, link a chatbot. While a robot can deal with common queries, more difficult cases can be transferred to human support representatives to ensure the utmost user experience.
Businesses can choose from different models when monetizing their fintech applications. However, it’s recommended to use a combination of a few methods to achieve the best results. In this section, we will explore various ways to generate income from fintech apps.
Nowadays, subscriptions have become the norm. They work by charging a customer a monthly or yearly fee for a certain amount of functionality. A type of subscription-based monetization model is called freemium which provides a free app version with access to additional features for a fee. Alternatively, you can offer a free trial period to allow users to gauge whether the app is worth paying the subscription.
Depending on the fintech app type, transactional fees can be a lucrative way of generating income. By charging a small fee for each transaction, you can create a steady stream of income without demanding any monthly payments.
If you would like to keep your app free, you can include ads. Ideally, ads should be seamless and not disturb the experience. For example, put an ad in between the transactions so the ad plays while the user is waiting for the transfer to complete. However, beware of ad fatigue and make sure your users don’t get too frustrated with irrelevant and intrusive adverts.
Financial apps collect and generate a lot of user data that can be useful for marketing and sales strategies. Anonymize your data before making any sales and make sure you’re working with a trusted company. Don’t forget to get user consent before gathering data to avoid reputational and monetary losses in the future.
This part is dedicated to offering you a step-by-step guide to developing a fintech app, so you can learn how to build a fintech app in an efficient and cost-saving way.
Before jumping into fintech app development, it’s crucial to learn as much about the fintech market as possible. Starting with general information about market trends, fluctuations, and opportunities, investigate the biggest players. The main goal of this step is to learn your competition and identify a niche that your product could succeed in.
Aside from fintech market research, create user personas to identify the target audience. By the end of this phase, you should be able to explain what your product does and what issue it solves for which particular user base. From there, you can move to other nuances like whether your app will be launched globally or locally or whether it’ll operate in the cloud or using traditional infrastructure.
The more precise and extensive you execute this step, the easier and smoother the fintech app development process will go.
Legal compliance is imperative in fintech solutions. In 2020, financial institutions collectively paid a whopping $5.6 billion in non-compliance fees. If you would like to avoid huge fines and damage to your brand name, build a fintech app that is fully compliant with every regulation in your area. Learn more about policies such as Know Your Customer (KYC), Anti-Money Laundering (AML), PCI DSS, and others.
Additionally, every app regardless of the industry is expected to adhere to guidelines for Google Play and Apple’s App Store as well as data protection laws like GDPR.
Examine your primary competition to identify which monetization approach works best for your niche and target audience. Most businesses don’t settle for one model and combine various approaches to find the best ratio. For example, you can charge a subscription fee for full access and keep basic features free while combining them with ads.
Essential features are functions that are necessary to solve the main issue. This can be money transfers or basic investment options, depending on the app type. Identify the must-have features to build and deploy a Minimum Viable Product (MVP). However, basic features do include safety functions like OTP and MFA to ensure data protection.
This method allows businesses to launch a functional app without breaking the bank. At the same time, you will be able to collect initial feedback and improve your app in future iterations.
When choosing a collaboration model, you can opt for in-house hiring or outsourcing. If your team has the talent necessary to execute the project, you’re in luck. If not, hiring a fully-fledged team is costly and lengthy. Fintech app development outsourcing is a great alternative for those who wish to build an app without going over budget.
Interview several vendors to find the perfect IT partner to execute your vision. During the vetting process, focus on their technical experience, industry knowledge, and communication skills. Check their portfolio to learn about their experience and visit B2B reviews on G2 and Clutch. Finally, monitor their responsiveness and dedication to make sure you’re partnering up with a reliable fintech application development company.
Once you have chosen the right team and conveyed your idea to them, you can begin the actual coding process. Fintech app development involves UX design, coding, testing, and deployment. Stay in touch with your IT partner to retain control over operations and ensure the process goes in the right direction.
After the launch, it’s imperative to collect user feedback and implement changes to the app. This is a non-stop process that takes place over the entire lifespan of the application. Without continuous improvement, you’re exposing your app to potential cyberattacks as well as falling behind the competition.
The costs of fintech application development are contingent on a range of factors, from tech stack and features to the location of your vendor. Let’s explore how different aspects can impact the final bill.
This factor includes the number of features as well as the general complexity of the app concept. Furthermore, the type of fintech mobile apps can also play a vital part in price composition. For example, while a personal finance app takes 1,500 to 2,500 hours to build, a banking app development process may last up to 3,500 hours.
Basically, the more sophisticated and advanced the solution is the higher the bill. Applying cutting-edge technologies is the largest cost driver. If you want to provide personalized financial advice, technologies like big data and artificial intelligence will be the building blocks. The same goes for fraud prevention which is based on machine learning and other technologies.
Going with a simple design that is composed of UI components may be more affordable than creating complex 3D visuals. If your budget is rather tight, it’s recommended to develop a fintech app with a simplistic design and easy navigation. Prioritize ease of use and straightforward navigation to achieve the best outcomes on a budget.
The location of your fintech app development company is another important determinant. While software engineers based in the US and Western Europe charge up to $120 per hour, a developer from Eastern Europe with the same skill set offers $30 to $50. Other locations with competitive rates are in Asia and Latin America.
The final factor is the type of development: native or cross-platform. While native fintech application development may deliver a marginally better speed and performance, the costs are significantly higher. Cross-platform app development allows you to deploy one code source to both iOS and Android thus saving time and money.
How to create a fintech app that can withstand the competition? By adopting new technologies and addressing the current market trends. In this part, we will examine the most prominent trends that dictate the future of fintech app development.
Big data technology unlocks an array of possibilities by allowing businesses to collect and utilize large volumes of data. Instead of wasting all this vital data, you can capture it in a safe location and leverage it to gain valuable insights into customer behavior. Insurance apps apply big data to conduct risk analysis with elevated precision.
90% of fintech companies already utilize AI and ML in their applications. For instance, ML is widely adopted to detect fraudulent behavior and stop the intruder before they access your data. This technology is especially helpful in financial forecasts, allowing you to provide accurate predictions to your customer base. Finally, the aforementioned robo-advisers are also built using AI and ML algorithms.
Blockchain is aimed at improving the transparency and security of financial transactions by decentralizing the database. For example, smart contracts remove the middle man and subsequently accelerate the speed of transactions.
RPA is built to automate repetitive tasks that don’t require analytical thinking. Bots can process information, enter and update data, and perform other mundane error-prone duties. Humans can concentrate on tasks that demand creativity and problem-solving while bots handle everyday routines.
To increase security, fintech apps provide biometric features that safeguard their accounts. From fingerprint analysis and face recognition to iris and retinal scanning, companies have more ways to ensure data security.
Gamification is a widespread feature that adds interactivity to your financial app. For instance, an investment app can offer fantasy trading to incentivize users to begin investing. Banking apps may offer in-app rewards and badges for the amount of transactions per month. Gamification increases engagement and user retention as well as simplifies the learning curve.
If you wish to make your fintech app more inclusive, consider adding a voice recognition function. This feature empowers people with visual impairment to manage their finances, make purchases, and execute other operations.
As digital-only banks, neobanks continue to grow and attract more users allowing them easy access to their accounts. Especially for citizens without IDs or steady incomes, avoiding the requirements of traditional banks gave many people access to banking.
Fintech apps are a great way to connect with your customers, improve their experiences, and provide them with financial freedom. Although a tough undertaking, mobile application development for fintech can be bliss with a seasoned IT partner. NIX is a fintech app development team with years of experience in the industry. Our top-notch specialists will find a solution to your issues and deliver a high-performance application that meets your needs. Reach out to us to discuss your project and realize your great ideas.
Start by studying the market and generating an interesting idea. Conduct user analysis to study your target audience and create a fintech app that appeals to them. Then, choose a trusted IT partner and build a functional MVP to collect feedback and make your app better in future projects.
The costs can range anywhere from $60,000 to $150,000 and even higher. The actual sum depends on app type, complexity, tech stack, vendor, and other factors.
A fintech app is a mobile solution that allows users to perform various operations with their funds. From banking apps and lending apps to tax management and insurance, fintech covers a wide array of services.
Businesses can monetize their apps using in-app advertisements, subscriptions, data monetization, or by charging transaction fees. Most commonly, companies combine several models to generate enough income without making the app too expensive for their users.
By far, the biggest risk associated with financial technology is cybersecurity. Although any app is susceptible to cybercrime, fintech apps have higher chances of a threat due to their nature. When working with sensitive financial data, you are exposing yourself to more risks. For this reason, adhering to security standards is a must for any fintech app development company.
Having more than 15 years of experience in commercial banks and IT business Roman helps CEOs and IT Directors of commercial banks and agile fintech startups embrace digital transformation and deliver benefits to their clients through cutting-edge technologies.
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