We’ve already widely elaborated on what the most crucial aspects of FinTech app development are but let us just draw a small backdrop. First of all, a financial app needs to be user-friendly and intuitive so that the customers are able to understand complex financial data and manage sensible information. However, picking the tech solutions that match specific requirements of FinTech apps, such as security, are equally important. There’s too much at stake when it comes to money so data protection and law compliance are just a priority. That’s why FinTech is one of the driving forces in security innovations implementing widely multi-factor authentication and other solutions to protect valuable data. Another tech aspect specific to FinTech might be the integration with external services, such as payment systems, via an API. It allows convenient communication with other systems and facilitates the quick development of an all-in-one solution. Last but not least, the choice of mobile technology used to build the app has a huge influence on the business strategy.
One code to rule them all
Before jumping into the deep waters of mobile development, though, one needs to learn about existing solutions in order to choose the right path for themselves. Nowadays, it all boils down to two main options. One of them is creating a native app in a language specific to a particular operating system (for instance, Java or Kotlin for Android). The other solution, briskly gaining ground in software development across industries, is a cross-platform approach that covers multiple operating systems with only one codebase. Each of these options works differently and guarantees different results that we’ve presented in the article on our blog comparing React Native and Native development. Making an educated decision about which way to go should be tailored to a specific product as well as business needs, timeline and budget. Today we would like to show you how picking a cross-platform approach may affect the design and development of a FinTech product.
But let’s begin with the basics. How can we define cross-platform development? The idea behind it is that one digital product can become versatile and work on multiple digital platforms and environments. Even though it’s quite a fresh technology, there are already a few frameworks to choose from, including the most trending ones, such as Flutter, React Native and NativeScript. If you are looking for a comprehensive description and profound comparison - check our extensive guide.
Source: Google trends
The frameworks are supported by tech giants like Google (Flutter) or Facebook (React Native) as well as an engaged dev community. This translates to their quick development, but it also boosts their reliability and helps efficiently fight against main problems with these technologies like the uncertainty of their feature or UI issues.
One code, multiple businesses profits
So how exactly do cross-platform technologies support FinTech development? Well, it all arises from the characteristics of both components outlined above. But to match them precisely and draw proper conclusions, we’ve created a short list of advantages gained by using cross-platform mobile development in FinTech.
1. Reach a wider audience
There are numerous advantages of creating one codebase compatible with several platforms. First and foremost, it enables companies to reach a wider set of users. You don’t have to decide whether owners of iOS or Android devices are more important for your company. The app is ready to be downloaded by both of them right from the very beginning.
2. Cut the Time to Market
One code also allows a team of developers to create a digital product in a flash - even 30-50% faster than within native app development. With a massive collection of ready-made components, it’s even quicker to create an MVP using pre-written pieces of code. All this shortens the time to market, which is especially significant for companies from highly competitive industries, such as banking, hospitality or logistics. In fact, many startups use this approach to speed up mobile development.
3. Save a budget
Obviously, quicker development means not only less time spent on creating the app but also more money left in the startup’s pocket. The savings are achieved also because of a smaller team of programmers required to build an app working on multiple platforms.
4. Scale-up more efficiently
Cross-platform frameworks ensure a significant dose of flexibility and code reusability (up to 90%!). They also enable developers to make quick updates (via a Hot Reload option) and add new features without fuss. What’s more - with one codebase, the code is also more understandable for new devs joining the project later on.
5. Create and manage the team more efficiently
Even though cross-platform technologies are a kind of newbies in the mobile world, the learning curve of the frameworks is not too steep. React Native, NativeScript and Ionic are based on JavaScript, Xamarin uses C#, only Flutter harnesses less popular programming language - Dart (still it’s found as pretty friendly to master). That helps to solve the biggest problem of almost all startups around the world - a limited dev talent pool. It’s so much easier to find JavaScript programmers, JS being the most commonly used programming language, than looking for members of separate teams working on JAVA and Swift. It also costs less effort to handle managing one team, no matter if you hire devs in-house or outsource IT works.
6. Ensure the great User Experience
Another important element for FinTech companies is seamless User Experience. Many people may think that the cross-platform methods aren’t suitable for FinTech apps because of an inferior UI in comparison to native apps, but their concerns are exaggerated. Thanks to numerous custom components and widgets, mobile apps developed with a cross-platform approach provide their users with impeccable UI and excellent user experience, as well as a close-to-native look and feel requiring less money and time. Flutter, for instance, supports neuromorphic interface elements but also leaves space for custom solutions. When it comes to React Native, it has a great community behind it to ensure a smooth experience for its users. The framework provides a simple and responsive interface, which works perfectly when presenting big amounts of data. In regards to Flutter, it’s rich in different UI components used to create complex, yet user-friendly digital products. Want to see how Flutter handles design challenges? See the video below and read a full story of our magical Ginny app.
7. Ensure security
But what about security? Dart, being the programming language used to build Flutter apps, provides developers with basic encryption functions as well as multiple authentication plugins to protect sensitive user data. What’s more, an increasing number of payment gateways have started to support Flutter. React Native, on the other hand, allows easy development of native modules, including fingerprint authentication feature so heavily used in FinTech applications to further enhance the security level. Finally, both frameworks ensure safe data storage.
Does this relationship really work?
The whole list looks quite legit, but how does it work in real life? The world has already witnessed many cross-platform applications disrupt the financial industry. One of them is definitely Nubank - a Brasilian, Flutter-powered mobile banking platform, backed by many investors and available in different countries across Latin America. Another successful mobile app built with Flutter is Change Invest, enabling the Europeans to make secure and simple crypto investments. With regards to apps fueled by React Native, we should definitely mention a convenient cryptocurrency wallet developed by TenX as well as QuickBooks accounting app by Intuit - a creator of modern financial tools from California. One of the major players in the industry, Genuine Impact, has also used a cross-platform approach to create its outstanding mobile app that empowers individual investors and allows them to make educated financial decisions.
And these are only a few examples that already show how powerful a combination of cross-platform development and FinTech can be.
As shown above, cross-platform frameworks such as Flutter or React Native may definitely contribute to the success of your FinTech mobile app. The most important thing, though, is to analyse both business and technological factors in order to choose a solution tailored to your specific needs. You’re still not sure what would work best with your product? Feel free to get in touch with us and ask for advice!