The fintech market is booming. According to the latest report by Reports and Data, it’s expected to reach 190.80 billion U.S dollars in 2028. Probably, each of us has used alternative financial services at least once, be it a payment application, digital banking or a crypto platform.
With such a variety of offerings, creating a new fintech app seems like a daunting task. How to stand out from competitors and create a promising software product? Having worked with fintech startups for over 5 years, I have highlighted the key points that distinguish successful projects from failed ones, and I’m happy to share these findings with you
Take the security of your app seriously
Security shouldn’t be just a word for your promotional materials. Users won’t believe you unless you provide some facts and guarantees. According to statistics, over the past 2 years, the number of cyberattacks against financial companies has increased by 238%. Nobody wants to take risks and your potential customers will definitely use security as one of the deciding factors when choosing to install your application.
Discuss a security strategy with your development team. Advanced security features may require investment, but you will lose a lot more if you bring a fintech application with security vulnerabilities to the market. Here are some security tips.
If you are using cloud data storage, take care of adding a cloud data loss prevention (DLP) service. Don’t forget about two-factor authentication, encrypting user data, and regular backups. Implement a system for monitoring user activity and blocking suspicious transactions. Needless to say, how important it is that the application code is error-free, and the APIs used are safe and compatible.
Provide exceptional user experience
The user experience depends on countless elements, ranging from the look and feel of the application to the speed of page loading. Let’s be honest, there are a lot of fintech applications on the market, but not all of them are successful and UX plays a primary role in this.
Experienced UX/UI designers advise keeping it simple when creating user interfaces for financial apps. Don’t force the user to go through dozens of steps to reach their goal, be it checking the balance or making a transaction. One screen shouldn’t display too much data. Also, don’t forget to make your application accessible to people with cognitive, physical, or other types of disabilities, as these people account for about 15% of the population, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
Another thing to keep in mind is interactivity and engagement. A financial app doesn’t mean a boring app. Feel free to add gamification elements, reward systems, and AI-based features such as voice assistants to provide an exceptional user experience.
Comply with regulations
The regulation of the fintech industry still has many blind spots. The difficulty, at least, is that there is no single regulatory framework yet that makes it easy for fintech companies to enter new markets. Even in the US, fintech regulation differs from region to region making it difficult for providers to obtain all the necessary licenses and permits. So, it is not easy but necessary.
As a provider, you will create an excellent base for maintaining your business and will be able to protect yourself and your users from some risks. Also, regulatory compliance makes your application more reliable in the eyes of users. It is important to study the fintech regulation in the regions you intend to operate in before starting the development process in order to properly formulate the requirements and create a product taking into account the regulatory rules.
Explore before you create
When you develop a fintech application, you create it for someone else to use, right? Then why do many people forget to study their target audience and find out their needs? If you want to create a product that will take its place in the market, you first need to determine this place. There is the discovery phase in software development for this.
The discovery phase helps to sort your project on the shelves and determine what exactly needs to be developed, for whom, how, how much time and investment it will take. Basically, this includes a detailed development plan based on the data obtained in the process of studying your business idea. During the discovery phase, you may find that your idea needs improvement and it is better than releasing a product that no one needs to market. Also, the discovery phase allows you to reduce project risks, optimize the budget and check the feasibility of product implementation using the chosen technology stack.
Don’t skimp on the development team
Fintech is closely associated with startups, which are often on a tight budget. Because of this, they try to save money on everything, including a development team, which leads to low-quality software. A certain scope of work requires certain human resources. You cannot hire one developer and expect him to do everything from design to testing. I mean, you can, but the quality of the app designed this way will not be satisfactory.
Fintech software development requires deep expertise and understanding of the industry, especially if you want to use innovative technologies such as blockchain or AI. A good product is a foundation for the success of your fintech business. Only a qualified development team can provide the required level of security and performance. If you want to save money, you can turn to software outsourcing and find a company within your budget, but choose a team with experience in building fintech applications and a portfolio to back this up.
Visit IdeaSoft website to learn more about Fintech software development.
Wrapping up
Developing quality and potentially successful fintech application requires investment in market research and development teams. Even the best idea can be ruined by poor implementation. Your customers won’t wait for you to fix bugs and improve the app after going to market. After trying it once and having a bad experience, they will abandon your product and choose another one. That’s why you need to do it right the first time and offer users a product that meets their needs. Invest in security, design, human resources, and listen to your users. This way, you can create a great fintech app that benefits you.
