How To Build A Fintech App?

There is a huge Fintech market expanding by leaps & bounds and you will be astonished looking at the steeply raised revenue of the Fintech industry from the year 2017 to 2027. As per Statista, the overall revenue of the fintech industry worldwide is predicted to upsurge by US$125.18 billion yearly between 2023 and 2027.

Though it slowed down in 2022 including the investment activity but in 2023, it picked up from where it left off and has estimated US$169.32 billion in revenue globally. The overall global fintech industry revenue is forecasted to be around US$294.5 billion in 2027.

The pandemic also affected the whole situation of the fintech sector as people went digital at a speedy rate and finally got to know the importance of mobile payments and banking. While digging deeper into it, we will find out that technologies have played a significant role to expand this realm and its usage in different sectors.

Based on this, there are now hundreds of mobile applications running in the market that are beneficial to provide people convenience and ease doing payments and managing finances. Considering people’s interest, the increasing number of fintech app downloads, and the bright future of the finance sector, businesses are devising multiple fintech app ideas to build a fintech app that can help them outshine their competitors.

Are you also looking to build one? This below fintech app development guide will help you to know about how to develop a fintech app, different types, used technologies to make a fintech app, monetization model, and others. Have a look-

What is Fintech App?

A fintech app can be considered a software application leveraging advanced technology to provide solutions and services appropriately to users. The term ‘fintech’ involves both finance and technology to facilitate users with a wide variety of functions like payment, banking, budgeting, investing, and others.

Fintech apps are simply used as mobile platforms to make financial services easy to use and accessible for users via their smartphones or tablets. These apps comprise secure encryption & authentication methods to assure the protection of financial transactions and users’ personal data.

You must choose the right fintech development company to create an app with all the important features to streamline the financial processes. A Fintech app also offers personalized insights and augmented user experience that revolutionizes traditional financial systems while strengthening the individuals for effective financial management in this digital era.

How Fintech App is Shaping the Future of Finance?

Businesses are adopting more cutting-edge technologies day by day for building a fintech application that can provide a promising future to the finance sector. And we can’t deny the fact that Fintech apps have provided several groundbreaking benefits to users that have attracted businesses to get into this industry.

Let’s get to know how fintech apps are affecting the finance sector and its future-

• Multiple Payments Options
• Advanced Financing Options
• Defeating Financial Exclusion
• More Investment Opportunities

1. Multiple Payments Options

The emergence of multiple digital payment options is the most significant aspect to reshape the future of finances. Fintech apps offer instant and seamless transactions enabling users to send and receive funds with just a few clicks. There are provided several types of payment options by fintech apps through which users can pay, they are credit/debit cards, Google Wallet, UPI, net banking, Apple Pay, Samsung Pay, etc.

With this, people don’t need to carry cash with them like old days, now they can pay anywhere anytime with digital wallets conveniently. With time, businesses have also been careful in terms of security while creating a fintech app that makes it more favorable for the future. You can go for it without a second thought as it is one of the popular mobile app development trends.

2. Advanced Financing Options

Gone are the days when people have to be patient in order to pay someone or take loan money from a bank. As time passes, the credit market has also been revolutionized as businesses are comprising peer-to-peer money or loan lending services with the help of expert fintech app developers. These services make it easier for users to borrow money from another party or bank.

Nowadays, Fintech software development companies are also implementing various methods into fintech apps that make the payback process even simpler to provide the best to users.

3. Defeating Financial Exclusion

Fintech apps are defeating financial exclusion by giving access to basic financial services for underserved populations. It includes people who don’t have bank accounts due to some reasons such as not being able to fulfill the minimum balance requirement. Here fintech apps allow them to perform transactions, obtain loans, and access saving accounts via Google Pay, digital wallet, etc.

This way, fintech apps are able to strengthen individuals who are eliminated from the conventional financial system while encouraging economic empowerment and financial enclosures.

4. More Investment Opportunities

Businesses are now able to provide advantageous investment opportunities including bonds, stocks, cryptocurrencies, etc. to people via efficient fintech mobile apps. As per the recent fintech trends, they are trying to incorporate every possible service with the help of a leading fintech app development company.

They provide easy-to-use platforms with fractional investing, low fees, and automated advisory services. With this, people are able to expand their portfolios and invest in more profitable markets to grow their wealth.

Different Types of Fintech Apps

Before choosing a financial app development company, you must get proper details and know what type of Fintech app will be the most appropriate for your business. The chosen Fintech app will have a direct impact on your product offerings and business model along with how your end customers handle their funds. Get insights into different types of fintech apps that are as follows-

• Mobile Payment App
• Mobile Banking App
• Consumer Finance App
• Investment App
• Insurance App
• Lending App
• Regulatory (RegTech) Apps

1. Mobile Payment App

It is one of the most popular fields where we can see the huge impact of Fintech on mobile technologies. Mobile payment apps have become an irreplaceable part of our lives as now we don’t need to carry any cash in our wallets. The reason behind this is multiple payment gateways integrated with the mobile wallet used by millions of consumers and ventures.

But why they are so popular? This one of the fintech app types provides an easy-to-use & secure payment process along with a better user experience. These mobile payment apps have surpassed the hurdles aroused by standard payment methods. If you want to go for a mobile payment app, you can build an e-wallet app like PayPal to get more profits.

2. Mobile Banking App

The banking app enables users to access and streamline their different bank accounts via their smartphones. These types of apps comprise a lot of features and functions such as checking current balances, statements of months, fund transfers, loan applications, bill payments, customer support, and credit card management.

Banking apps offer convenience to users while conducting banking activities without going to any physical branch. Going for mobile banking app development helps ventures to get a feature-rich app to improve the overall banking experience for users along with efficient, quick, and user-friendly interactions between banks and their customers.

3. Consumer Finance App

Consumer finance applications are used to manage the finances of users and help them to make an appropriate plan to spend their funds. Fintech apps like MoneyLion, Mint, and Finch are the best examples of consumer finance apps. Primarily, this app helps users with budgeting, managing digital payments, credit card storage, and customer data analytics. This type of Fintech app is beneficial to improve the user experience, alleviate the resistance from operations over the standard banking ways and decrease the costs.

4. Investment App

This type of app is a perfect example to consider while opting for Fintech mobile app development solutions. Investment applications allow users to review first and then invest in multiple financial resources as per their suitability. These solutions are advantageous for customers to enhance their performance to invest by offering them associated data analytics. For instance, you can look at apps such as Robinhood, Acorns, and CNBC.

5. Insurance App

Insurance solutions help customers to get proper and valid information about insurance. These help users resolve the current issues that exist in the financial industry. There are multiple sectors where users can have insurance such as claims settlement, sales management, travel, vehicle, medical, etc.

The Insurtech niche is highly interconnected with finance, therefore, we can call Insurtech an important part of the Fintech world. Businesses who are thinking of getting into it must be ready to bear the higher insurance mobile app development cost due to the requirement of adding advanced features such as real-time assistance, policy renewal reminders, claims submission, etc.  

6. Lending App

Businesses must create money lending apps to help people connect with other people who are interested in borrowing money or giving it to someone needy without a government-regulated creditor. These apps also allow consumers to lend a little amount against their next payment. Fintech mobile apps such as Dave, ZestFinance, and Brigit are popular lending apps in the market that you can take into consideration if you are thinking to go for loan lending app development.

7. Regulatory (RegTech) Apps

The Financial conduct authority developed RegTech in 2015 as a subset of Fintech focusing on creating technology to accelerate the regulatory requirement’s delivery. These are innovative solutions that are helpful in better compliance & delivery of affordable, secure, and easy-to-integrate regulations. The primary goal of RegTech is to systematize and augment the regulatory process’s transparency while managing risks, transaction monitoring, and reporting.

How to Create A Fintech App?

There is no such perfect guide to know how to create a fintech app. But to help you, here we have compiled some steps related to mobile app development process for developing fintech app. Have a look below-

• Step 1: Market Analysis
• Step 2: App Design Phase
• Step 3: App Development Phase
• Step 4: Testing Phase
• Step 5: App Launching & Maintenance

Step 1: Market Analysis

 The discovery or market research phase provides initial information about what to include and what should not in a Fintech mobile app. All this information is a must needed to have an upfront analysis of the involved development procedures. This stage will not only help the client but the development team as well to adopt an understanding of the ongoing project.

It will comprise a complete analysis of market trends, competitors, likes and dislikes of your target audiences, start-up goals, idea validation, risk management, etc. According to this research, businesses can also plan their app development budget.

Step 2: App Design Phase

Providing users with an amazing experience and giving them a reason to use your app by applying interactive UI/UX is the ultimate goal of the app designing phase. The app designing team will help you with this and the process will include steps such as UX wireframe, designing of different app screens to make the app responsive, distinct designs for Android and iOS design, and an attractive prototype. Be attentive while having the app designing phase as your app must have an interactive and responsive design to grab the audience’s attention.

Step 3: App Development Phase

After completing the designing phase, now let’s jump to the development phase. It is all about turning your idea into reality by writing lines of code to implement the necessary elements. Nowadays, many businesses are going for MVP as it has a wide scope in the market. Launching an MVP will provide you with an idea about the user’s response to your app.

MVP version will have the required features only that will keep the development time and overall cost of fintech app limited. You can make your app shine by integrating third-party APIs & services with the help of the right technology stack and mobile app development tools.

Step 4: Testing Phase

The testing phase provides you with assurance about the smooth working and fast performance of the application. App testing helps find out the errors and resolve them in less time. It will also help you for the betterment of several irregularities. When the app gets bug-free after multiple rounds of testing, it is ready to launch in the market.

Step 5: App Launching & Maintenance

Product launch is an integral procedure to do after the development phase. Before launching, you must study the responses of users about similar apps that existed in the market. It will provide you with an idea about what is the right way to launch your product, including the market situation, circumstances, etc. Consider updating your app time-to-time with the latest upgrades to stay high from the competitors.

Emerging Technologies Used in Fintech App Development

When you are looking for how to build a fintech app, you should take help from advanced technologies to deliver the best possible payment experience to users. With digitalization, it has been mandatory for financial institutions to create cutting-edge solutions integrating such technologies helpful for efficient financial management. Look at the below to know about those emerging technologies-

• Artificial Intelligence
• Blockchain
• Open APIs
• IOT
• Robotics
• Low Code/No Code
• Open Source
• Machine Learning
• Cloud Computing
• Quantum Computing
• Biometrics
• AR/VR

1. Artificial Intelligence

According to the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance (CCAF), AI is forecasted to change into a significant business driver across different financial services including 77% of respondents anticipating AI to hold high or very high importance to their ventures in the coming years. AI in the fintech industry is much beneficial in terms of enhanced user experience, personalized services, and improved efficiency.

It also includes chatbots to solve customer queries, AI algorithms to identify any suspicious activity, and launched Natural language processing to increase human-like interactions.

2. Blockchain

Blockchain technology has so much potential that can provide various benefits to the fintech industry. It helps in data sharing, recording, and synchronizing across different data repositories in real-time via using DLT (distributed ledger technology).

When you create fintech apps with the DLT, apps get enabled to offer tamper-proof and decentralized transactions while alleviating intermediaries and costs.

You should hire Blockchain developers who are experts in the same field to avail services like smart contract automation, quick cross-border payments, and peer-to-peer lending along with augmented financial inclusivity and accessibility. Less transaction cost, theft issues identification, and improved regulations & auditing are some of the other benefits that can be added with the help of a Blockchain development company.

3. Open APIs

Open application programming interfaces or open APIs are much helpful in revolutionizing fintech applications. With standardized interfaces, open APIs permit smooth integration and data sharing between varied financial technology apps. These enable fintech apps to get connected with the different payment gateways, banking systems, credit bureaus, and others.

These APIs work as a regulatory framework to accept competition among all the banks while encouraging better services for customers. It also allows to access a wide range of services from different providers along with making personal financing & consumer lending easier. Its buy-now-pay-later feature also makes it more attractive to customers with interest-free, short-term payment options.      

4. IOT (Internet Of Things)

The Internet of Things is a necessary technology to integrate if you decide to develop a fintech app. It is considered a network of physical objects rooted in software, sensors, and other technologies. These IoT objects embedded in different devices gather real-time data including transaction details, risk indicators, and IoT sensors.

After collection, the data is transferred and evaluated to offer personalized fintech services, predictive analytics, and fraud detection.

With the help of a top mobile application development company, you can obtain IoT-integrated fintech apps that enhance payment systems along with flawless transactions, secure authentication via biometrics, and multi-factor authentication. IoT also helps in knowing customers’ preferences by collecting data for business improvement.   

5. Robotics

Robotics integration represents the involvement of RPA (Robotic process automation) and intelligent automation to streamline repetitive processes like transaction processing, data entry, and document verification that improve operational efficiency with fewer errors.

When you are going to build your own fintech app, consider this as an essential technology to add as it will help you to execute intricate calculations and algorithms with accuracy and speed.

In the fintech industry, RPA uses specific software and tools for task execution as per the requirements. RPA also helps in proceeding with real-time requests to internal & external systems for data authentication at the time of KYC. It also makes account tracking and sending automated notifications easier.

6. Low Code/No Code

No code or low-code development refers to building a fintech app using a graphical user interface enabling fast and efficient development without needing extensive coding expertise. You will need no expert developers to write code manually, you can use visual symbols to depict the code blocks and can combine them with the help of drag and drop.

While finding how to create a fintech app, businesses must go for no code/low code to manage processes like payments, account management, risk assessment, and lending. It also helps ventures to shift commercial requirements by reacting quickly. For banks that have a large number of customers, no code can do wonders in order to create a fintech app while maintaining the overall fintech app development cost.

It also helps in smoothly processing the client onboarding and solving logistics visions initiated by traditional and local trading laws. Also, launching new software at a fast speed will help businesses react to regulation amendments.

7. Open Source

Open-source architecture and SaaS (software-as-a-service) solutions are considered to be important aspects of the FinTech sector currently. Fintech solutions created on open-source technologies provide customizable and cost-efficient options for firms.

By offering these open-source SaaS assistance, fintech apps can access a broad range of pre-built functions and modules such as security features, payment gateways, customer management, and data analytics.

Businesses can also use cloud-based technology enabling businesses to stay driven and getting updated consistently. Open source fintech solutions also help in enhanced predictability, provide ease of access, and reduce on-site labor.

8. Machine Learning

Machine learning integration into fintech apps leverages advanced algorithms to evaluate large amounts of data, increase decision-making processes, and obtain valuable insights. Machine learning techniques can be utilized as anomaly detection, predictive modeling, and fraud detection to boost lending approaches, assess credit risk, and automate underwriting.

It also helps in analyzing suspicious activities and preventing fraud. In fintech sectors, it is integrated for more loan approvals with fewer risks and assisting firms to identify frauds.

9. Cloud Computing

Cloud computing is helpful in security enhancement via automating and embedding security controls. Firms need to consider that data holding can comprise the risk of data leaking particularly when it is combined with industry limitations. Hence, they can use cloud computing integrated fintech solutions to deliver secure, scalable, and cost-effective solutions to users.

Using cloud computing solutions is more reliable than conventional IT ecosystems. Cloud has advanced security features such as data encryption and zero-trust verification to work against fraud and data leakage.

These features help the cloud to store and manage data securely so that companies can invest highly in payment & fraud prevention approaches. At last, it strengthens fintech applications to offer efficient and innovative financial services to a wider user base.  

10. Quantum Computing

Combining quantum computing with fintech apps brings up a cutting-edge strategy to change the whole sector by harnessing the gigantic computational power of quantum computers to resolve intricate financial issues and evaluate procedures.

By applying calculations and algorithms, these apps can be helpful to increase risk assessment, fraud detection, and portfolio optimization, along with using secure encryption techniques to ensure security and higher accuracy. Fintech apps can unleash new frontiers in data prediction, analysis, and optimization by leveraging quantum technology.

11. Biometrics

Biometric comprised fintech solutions include advanced authentication approaches based on different behavioral and physiological characteristics of people. These involve facial recognition, fingerprints, voice recognition, behavioral patterns like keystroke dynamics, and more.

It assists in increasing safety and augmenting user experience by allowing them to access financial accounts easily, authorize transactions, and execute sensitive operations via a simple biometric scan that removes the need for PINs or any password. It provides robust identity verification while lessening the risks of unauthorized access or fraud.

12. AR/VR

While knowing how to make a fintech app, you must know the importance of integrating Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality technologies. With these, fintech applications can provide better user experiences and collaborative virtual environments to do financial interactions and deliver different services.

These allow users to cooperate and visualize the financial data in 3D space, making difficult financial approaches more engaging and accessible. It also includes virtual presentations, meetings, and training sessions to improve knowledge transfer and collaboration. Overall, AR/VR also helps in simplifying tasks such as investing, budgeting, and making payments.     

Top Challenges in FinTech App Development

Advancements in the fintech sector have provided the industry with numerous benefits but it has also caused some challenges. Due to these challenges and difficulties, various fintech solutions have not seen any success in the market yet. Here you need to have assistance from the right mobile app development companies to overcome these challenges.

First, let’s find out below about those challenges that you must defeat in order to taste success like other market giants.

• Recognizing a Gap in the Market
• Choosing the Right Technology Stack
• Accurate Planning for Different App Difficulties
• Delivering a Good User Experience
• Protecting Sensitive User Data
• Compliance with Government Regulations
• Big Data and AI Integration
• Blockchain Integration
• 3rd Party Integrations

1. Recognizing a Gap in the Market

This challenge involves recognizing the underserved or unmet requirements within the financial market and creating something that can address those unfulfilled gaps. While thinking about how to start a fintech app, your first goal must be to do thorough market analysis & research and identify the segments where conventional financial services fell short.

These unfulfilled gaps may range from inefficient lending processes, outdated payment systems, improper security measures, or lack of financial literacy tools.

2. Choosing the Right Tech Stack

Once you have understood what is fintech app and how you can develop it, your next move should be to figure out and choose the appropriate fintech mobile app development programming languages and tools to build it. The chosen tech stack will refer to the tools and platforms your fintech application is created with, both server and client side.

Further, it also comprises advanced front-end & back-end programming languages, third-party APIs, databases & servers, and operating systems. You need to be extra attentive while selecting it as the wrong tech stack can be called a death sentence for a fintech mobile application. It can cause security vulnerabilities, enhanced fintech app development costs, and decreased app performance.     

3. Accurate Planning for Different App Difficulties

This challenge encompasses addressing different obstacles and complexities found in the process of development and deployment of financial applications. That’s why the fintech app development process requires detailed planning and strategic concerns to overcome all the challenges and issues such as rigorous regulatory requirements, legacy system integration, security vulnerabilities, and user experience.

By addressing these complexities, fintech apps can deliver smooth financial services, foster rapid innovation, and boost users’ trust.    

4. Delivering Good User Experience

User retention and user experience are two important terms that you can’t ignore to have great success in the market. If users are coming back to your solution, then it is called retention. But with the intense market competition, it is difficult to have higher user engagement and retention.

For this, you need to keep your app highly intuitive, and seamless and have to provide users with a personalized experience while making the navigation easier.  

5. Protecting Sensitive User Data

Data security and protection is such a crucial part of fintech app development and businesses can easily make the solution this way by choosing the right app development tech stack. The security challenge is significant to consider as a single data breach such as bank account data leaking can bring great disasters while shoving your product off the market.  

6. Compliance with Government Regulations

The fintech solution must adhere to rigorous regulatory frameworks such as government guidelines, AML (anti-money laundering) regulations, KYC (Know Your Customer), and more. Incorporating legitimate company identification processes is essential in ensuring compliance with these frameworks. While adding such features may increase the complexity and cost of developing a fintech app, they are indispensable for market entry and maintaining regulatory compliance.

7. Big Data and AI Integration

As we know that the integration of big data and AI into fintech apps represents risk assessment and data management. The large volume of financial data is not possible to handle without the help of rich expertise and robust infrastructure. Also, AI algorithm implementation for analyzing frauds & risks demands complicated models and skilled resources. Hence, it can be the biggest challenge in terms of complexity and cost. 

8. Blockchain Integration

Blockchain integration into fintech applications can be done with the help of appropriate mobile app development tools and technologies. But do you know it requires deep knowledge about the complexities of smart contracts, distributed ledge systems, and cryptographic protocols?

Thus, your hired fintech developers must integrate the Blockchain carefully while making sure of interoperability with other financial systems.  

9. 3rd Party Integrations

While integrating third parties into fintech apps, businesses have to go through the issue of the seamless connectivity with the external systems comprising identity verification providers or accounting platforms, or payment gateways that require vigorous integration frameworks.

Here fintech applications must attend to compatibility problems, data security concerns, and third-party API reliability. When businesses try to manage different integrations, each one with its own varied dependencies and updates, they demand smooth and efficient coordination.

Thus, businesses are required to overcome these challenges through scalability and performance optimization, thorough planning, severe testing, and continuous monitoring to obtain a cohesive fintech application.

How Fintech Apps Make Money?

There are multiple aspects to consider by Fintech app development companies while providing Fintech app development services and the monetization model is one of them. There are applied different money-making models to get high revenue and profits. Below you can get to know how Fintech apps make money, have a look-

• Referrals & In-App Advertising
• App Fee Schedule or Subscription
• Business Collaboration
• Transaction Fees
• Interchange Fees
• Data Monetization
• Lending & Interest Income
• Crowdfunding

1. Referrals & In-App Advertising

Users don’t need to pay money always while using financial services. Some of the businesses earn money by capitalizing on the services and products to which users are paying attention, they get some commission or decided fee from those businesses who are interested to show the advertisement on their Fintech app. Robinhood app follows this strategy.

2. App Fee Schedule or Subscription

This straightforward way to earn money comprises different payment schedules based upon the regularity of charges, it can be subscription or transactional. It has two ways, firstly users only pay for the services they use, second, they subscribe to the services and pay monthly fixed charges.

3. Business Collaboration

It is the most used monetizing way that is even used by the fastest-growing Fintech organizations. Fintech companies can have a partnership with standard financial institutions or with their neighbor vendors, this way they can enhance their services and add value to them. Coinbase also applies this monetization strategy.

4. Transaction Fees

When money gets transferred, whether it is from a consumer or a merchant, there is always a specific fee charged by the fintech app. It is one of the most applied ways by financial solutions to maximize their profitability. This monetization model comprises fees from money transfers, peer-to-peer payments, investment trades, or money transfers.   

5. Interchange Fees

Whenever a user swipes a credit or debit card, he will be charged a specific percentage of the transaction fees. The percentage can vary based on different factors such as merchant category, card network (Mastercard, VISA, etc.), and purchase amount. This way, fintech apps are able to gain much more revenue.

6. Data Monetization

Fintech mobile applications gather vast amounts of user data including their personal and banking information that can be anonymized and grouped to deliver insights to advertisers, businesses, or financial institutions about their preferences and requirements. These institutions and businesses use this data for targeted advertising.

7. Lending & Interest Income

Various fintech mobile applications offer lending or borrowing services to generate revenue by charging specific interest on loans provided via their platforms. They earn interest from borrowers while allowing them to earn a profit on the funds they have lent out. This way, fintech apps can earn higher income with the help of lending activities.

8. Crowdfunding

The crowdfunding refers to creating a solution helpful to raise money for other financial institutions or some kind of initiative. Smaller capitals of money are collected from a wider base of audiences to boost the financing of specific projects. In return, the platform charges some fees or earns from the simplified transactions.

Conclusion

Over the past few years, the banking and the financial sector have been buzzing about the fintech-caused disruptions by offering users better alternatives to traditional banking options. The stats stated above shows how the tide is turning and even the traditional and long-established businesses are realizing the huge potential and need for these new technologies. To stay afloat, financial institutions must offer a service that can help users in attaining a seamless digital experience for handling their funds.

SemiDot Infotech offers a perfect balance of quality and price in all its projects. With a diverse portfolio of handling both international and national clients, the company aims to provide scalable and reliable solutions to its clients from all niches. There is a team of expert developers that offers efficient fintech software development services to help clients build their dream projects.

FAQs

Below we have provided some basic questions and answers related to fintech app development, have a look-