Have you ever dreamed about today’s reality? I mean the way technology seems to be evolving and taking care of various industry needs and verticals? It all seemed to be quite bizarre and unacceptable a decade ago. Well, we are fortunate enough to witness how these disruptive technologies are gearing up for the huge transformation into our day-to-day lives, be it through quick online payments or quick healthcare support, convenient at-home shopping experience and whatnot!
Introduction
With the increase in technology, every industry seems to be making the most of the evolving technology and the fintech realm is no exception. Financial technology is no longer a new term, it is used to enhance and automate financial services. The combination of finance and technology is popularly known as Fintech. In today’s times, Fintech is highly utilized by companies. Not to mention each one of them are of different size and industry verticals. The term that emerged in the 21st century is no longer a buzzing term or just a passing fad. In fact, after the rise of fintech, the need for more and more customer-oriented services became pretty much in vogue. The following post focuses on some of the best practices to take into consideration especially when you are developing a Fintech application.
Fintech is considered among various sectors such as education, retail banking, fundraising and a lot more. In simple words, fintech can be defined as a way through which people can conduct a wide range of financial activities such as transferring money, depositing a cheque, asking for loans, investing money in Fixed deposits, recurring accounts and a plethora of insurance policies and so more. Mobile banking, bitcoins, cryptocurrencies, and investment applications are some of the best examples of fintech.
Slowly and steadily the fintech industry is supposed to be growing at a pretty fanatic rate. Some of the best and most popular fintech applications include MoneyLion, RobinHood, Mint, Revolut, Tellus, N26, Finch, Coinbase and so forth. So now let us cover the overall understanding of fintech app development. How one can develop a fintech application in the best possible manner.
Best Practices for Developing a Fintech Application
#1 Security
Now can you tell me what is the prime factor that any business would require in their app development project? It’s high-end security. Yes, data security has been one of the major concerns for every small, medium or large-scale organization because ignoring such aspects could lead to:
- Compromising on the digital identities of your valued customers
- Allowing hackers to understand the system vulnerabilities
- Third-party service integrations can bring along some unwanted guests often known as viruses
- Malware attacks could be difficult to handle
- Trickier cloud migration
So yes one of the best practices to take into account especially when you are developing a fintech app is high-end security.
#1 Security Code – The code is very important here. So the best way to work on such projects is by planning the security very well in advance and trying to deal with ongoing flaws and vulnerabilities in the best way possible.
#2 Encryption – Another interesting way is to encrypt all the sensitive types of data and information. In technical terms, here one has to implement all the necessary algorithms that have the potential to transform data into a code where it can be easily exposed to only the intended receiver. Proper encryption is what is required here. Any unauthorized users cannot access any kind of sensitive information.
#3 Secure Data transmission – Try employing all the encryption algorithms. For example, AES Triple DES, RSA, TwoFish and a lot more!
#4 Multi-factor Authorization – Another interesting aspect or best practice that has to be taken into account is Multi-factor authorization. Security is the most integral aspect of your business. So accessing usernames and passwords shouldn’t be enough. I mean anyone can have your user ID and password. So what can be done is try to add more authentication aspects such as a phone number, email id, Touch ids such as fingerprint sensors, and Face ID. Make it more and more multi-factor.
#2 Monetizing the Fintech App
Another interesting yet must-have consideration has to be how you will monetize your fintech application. Choose a basic monetizing model. And once your app is completed and running, there is a huge scope for adding numerous additional features and functionalities. For example, here I would like to mention certain common monetization models.
- Subscriptions – One of the most common and the most familiar models is the subscription. If you are targeting those who are using online services or mobile apps then the subscription model is right for you. Here users are bound to receive a trial period, which could be either a few weeks or even a few days and decide whether it is reliable for their required needs or not. Once it expires, users can be charged different costs based on their subscription plan, be it monthly, weekly or yearly.
- Transactional Fees – Another interesting model that should be taken into consideration is transactional fees. This model in particular is highly recommendable for conducting seamless mobile payments and payment systems where fees are applied to all or specific payment types. One of the best examples to take into account here is Payoneer and WorldRemit. This can be considered as the primary revenue channel.
- Ads and Referrals – Another interesting model to take into consideration for a fintech app is to use as many ads and referrals as you can. Highly targeted ads and referrals especially from those who are doing it the right manner have the potential to enhance your fintech monetization strategy. Mint here is one of the best examples to take into account. It can be combined with other revenue-generation mechanisms for premium services, such as the ongoing monitoring of the user’s credit score.
#3 Stick to different Regulations and Policies
This one is another interesting Fintech app development rule that does play a pivotal role in the overall enhancement of security. It’s basically about keeping all the rules and regulations for data protection into account. Say for example,
- GDPR
- The Financial Conduct Authority or FCA
- eIDAS or Electronic Identification and Trust Services
- Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard
- GPG13
- The Personal Information Protection Act
- The Act on the Protection of Personal Information
- ISO/IEC 27001
#4 Features to incorporate
From the User perspective – One of the must-have features or functionality in your fintech app development project has to be effortless and seamless account management. You see, a bank account is a first and foremost thing that will grab the attention of your end user. So you are the one who is responsible for making the client’s journey seamless and smooth. For them managing their funds, loans, debit and credit cards, and keeping tabs on their savings accounts should be a doable job.
Now nobody has much time to spend on financial apps. Most of the time customers tend to take care of their finances while they are on the go whether they are commuting or doing something else. So seamless user experience is a must-have feature in any fintech app development project. In short, your target audience must reach their destination with the help of just a few taps. Also, when you are designing the fintech app, just make sure that the interface is highly customized to different users’ needs. Do not ignore their preferences, some might prefer lightweight and minimal-looking views. Also, they must know about the changes taking place. What’s yay or what’s nay right now? What opportunities should they must grab? You must keep in touch via push notifications and omnichannel messaging.
We, humans, are always irreplaceable, but AI-powered chatbots are something that shouldn’t be ignored at any rate. So make the most of it and ensure it is available 24/7/365. Here you can offer a user-friendly interface.
From the Admin Perspective – Another interesting perspective of a fintech app development is when you try developing it from the admin’s point of view. For an admin, automation turns out to be pure bliss. Automation here is the key to reducing relevant delays, especially when stuck within business-critical workflows and they also get time to focus on the end users. Now when you are developing a fintech-based app, just try roping in a business analyst. Here one must also consider using the cloud not just to collect valuable data but conclude several decisions and insights from it. Basically, you must do all this to improve your services.
Security here has to be your number one priority. After all, tons and tons of information and money are involved. So use biometric identification, fingerprint scanning, two-factor authentication, fraud prevention tools and a lot more!
AI is extremely handy here. So processing even large and large volumes of data and information are not so daunting or tricky. The key to gaining a competitive edge is by offering deep personalization. And that’s where the role of AI matters.
Final Word
Fintech applications are popping up like never before. Every business is gearing up to jump into the profit-spinning realm. The technology-dependent era demands for more and more such innovations. On and all, fintech applications ensure to offer easier assistance for the user. These apps ensure the conduct of seamless and smooth transactions, more effortless, and secured gateways. So why not consider these fintech apps?
I hope the following post did turn out to be helpful and insightful. In case, if you have any doubts or queries, feel free to mention them in the comment section below.
