Modern customers value convenience in every aspect of their lives, including how they manage their finances. Customers seek secure and straightforward ways to make payments, track spending, and invest without having to make physical visits or use physical money. This is where fintech services fit customers’ needs. Fintech app development continues to rise in response to changing customer habits. As fintech adoption continues to grow, more companies are joining the race to develop more innovative and more reliable financial applications. Let’s explore the process of fintech app development in more detail, including its types, costs, and steps involved.

What is Fintech App Development?

Fintech app development is the process of designing software applications to provide fintech services or solutions to customers. It aims to improve and simplify financial activities, such as mobile banking, internet banking, mobile payments, and other financial transactions, using modern technology. In recent fintech trends, it often integrates advanced technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain, and machine learning, to enhance functionality, security, and user experience.

Types of Fintech Apps

There are various examples of fintech applications, each with different characteristics and purposes. These apps are:

• Digital Banking: Digital banking enables customers to access banking services through mobile or web applications. For example, opening an account, conducting different types of money transfers, or accessing customer service digitally.

• Digital Payment: Digital payment apps focus on sending and receiving money locally or globally, supporting quick and cashless transactions. They enable peer-to-peer transfers, mobile wallet payments, and online checkout solutions, often integrating with merchants for seamless payments.

• Investment: Investment apps provide platforms to access various investment services, including trading stocks, bonds, crypto, and other assets. They empower users with tools for portfolio management, investment analysis, and automated advisory (robo-advisors). Investment apps provide an easy way to manage investment portfolios, even for those without prior experience.

• Personal Finance and Budgeting: With more payments being made digitally, managing personal finance is also done through online platforms. Personal finance and budgeting apps enable users to track expenses, create budgets, and manage their finances proactively.

• Lending: Lending apps make the borrowing and lending process easier. They create new ways for small businesses and individuals to obtain funding directly, serving as an alternative to traditional bank loans with high interest rates.

How Much Does It Cost to Develop a Fintech App?

The cost for fintech app development varies widely based on the app’s type, complexity, features, and development approach. According to NetGuru, basic fintech applications cost between $30,000 and $ 40,000. Mid-level fintech apps with more integrations and a robust user experience range between $60,000 and $150,000. Advanced or full-featured fintech platforms, such as neobanks or trading apps, can cost from $150,000 up to $300,000 or more.

Another factor affecting cost in fintech app development is the development approach and the developer’s geographic location. For example, native app development is generally more expensive as it requires separate codebases for iOS and Android, which increases design, development, and maintenance costs. At the same time, cross-platform development can cost 20-30% less upfront, as it shares a single codebase for multiple platforms.

The developer location also influences fintech app development costs. Developers from North America and Western Europe are generally 2-3 times more expensive than those from Asia or Eastern Europe. If the company considers outsourcing rather than developing it in-house, the cost can be drastically reduced, especially if the company lacks its own expertise.

How to Develop a Fintech App?

Fintech app development focuses on creating secure and user-friendly financial solutions for users. Let’s break down the process of developing a fintech app:

Conduct Market Research

The first step is to conduct market research to identify any new gaps your app can fill. You can also understand your target audience, including their preferences, behaviors, and pain points, as well as your competitors. This also helps validate your app idea, ensuring there is a demand for your fintech app. 

Define App Niche and Key Features

Next, define your app’s niche, such as a personal finance management app or a mobile payment app. Later, you can determine which features are essential to this niche and how they can effectively solve your users’ core problems. For example, a personal finance app should include features such as budgeting and saving tools, spending pattern reporting tools, and expense tracking capabilities.

Select Technology Stack

Your technology stack comprises programming languages, frameworks, and tools that support the scalability, security, and performance of the app. For fintech app development, select technologies supporting mobile platforms (iOS and Android), cloud services for data storage, and APIs to connect to banking services. 

Build Minimum Viable Product

Next, build a minimum viable product (MVP) of your fintech app. This is a simplified version of your app containing core functionalities. MVP helps reveal what works in your app and what needs improvement before developing further. By evaluating your core features early, you can launch your app more quickly, gather user feedback, and test market acceptance without making a full investment upfront.

Design UI/UX

An intuitive user interface and experience are crucial for fintech apps. Design should focus on usability, clarity, and accessibility to make complex financial data understandable for customers. A clean and trustworthy design fosters user confidence and encourages higher adoption rates. Consider user flow, visual hierarchy, and compliance with accessibility standards.

Develop the App

With your MVP and design ready, the developer team will code the app. This involves backend services, frontend interfaces, security implementations (including encryption and two-factor authentication), and compliance features. Agile development methodologies allow iterative progress with continuous testing and adjustments.

Test and Release

Before public release, conduct functional, security, performance, and usability testing to identify bugs, vulnerabilities, or usability issues. Testing ensures the app performs well under real-world conditions and meets regulatory requirements to safeguard sensitive financial data. After testing, prepare for app deployment and closely monitor user feedback to ensure the app continues to function smoothly without issues.

Discover PhinCon’s Expertise to Support Your Fintech App Development

Want to turn your fintech app idea into reality, but not sure where to start? PhinCon Pte Ltd is here with the right expertise to develop your dream fintech app. PhinCon offers comprehensive end-to-end IT outsourcing solutions designed to help businesses expedite their fintech app development process. Whether your company is planning to expand operations to Indonesia or seeking skilled remote IT professionals, PhinCon offers a streamlined approach to accessing top local talent without the complexity of internal resource management.

Our services encompass the entire process, from sourcing and screening to recruitment and salary and benefits management. Other than our IT outsourcing services, we also provide headhunting services for companies looking for local IT experts.

Our IT roles include Android Developer, iOS Developer, Fullstack Developer, Golang Developer, Mobile Developer, Quality Assurance, DevOps, Business Analyst, Solution Architect, Project Manager, L2 Operations Support, and more. Supported by our extensive partner network, a large talent database, and graduates from the PhinCon Academy IT Bootcamp, our dedicated Resource Management Team ensures a fast turnaround and reliable results. 

Partner now with PhinCon to focus on driving innovation and business growth while we provide the expertise that powers your fintech app development. For more information, contact us through email sales.sg@phincon.com. 

Editor: Trie Ayu Feminin & Irnadia Fardila