What Functions Are Vital for Mobile Investment Software Apps?

Investment software development

In the past, investing money and trading stocks required financial education. Today, information technology has simplified this procedure so much that even teenagers can make deposits. People are looking for mobile investment apps that optimize their investment management. To create useful software, developers should consider basic functions and add unique features. Only in this case a program will solve the problems of investors better than its market counterparts and outperform competitors. Let’s consider what features should be included in an investment app.

What is an investment app?  

Mobile investment apps are programs that help users to carry out the following procedures with deposits:

• invest money;
• check the value of a portfolio;
• enter buy and sell positions;
• view information about the current level of shares;
• read the news from financial markets;
• monitor real-time trading and conduct other operations.

Mobile investment apps differ in design, functions, and a set of tasks to be solved. But they serve a common goal: to simplify the investment procedure and make it clear to a broad audience.

Such programs give beginners and experienced investors the tools to make a profit. Investment software becomes a personal financial advisor, an online assistant available 24/7. This does not mean that everyone will receive passive income and will not risk money. A program does not guarantee income but simplifies financial activities on the stock exchange.

Investment app market overview

Mobile investment apps give beginners and experienced investors a lot of investment opportunities. Statista research showed that 55% of Americans invested in the stock market in 2020.

In addition, more and more people are using online investment services. In 2018, the share of investors aged 18-29 was 12.29%. And in 2020, large online brokers (Charles Schwab, TD Ameritrade, Etrade, Robinhood) saw a 170% increase in the number of new accounts. Young investors appear on the online exchange, and every year their number will grow.

Statistics confirm the fact that online investing is a promising area. There is a huge market for mobile investment apps offering creative investment management approaches.

Types of investment apps 

Bankrate determined that 63% of Americans use at least one financial software solution. 17% of these programs are investment apps. They approach the issue of investments in different ways and are aimed at different audiences. They can be divided into three categories:

Banking apps. These are programs that banks create for users to manage accounts, carry out transactions, transfer money, take loans and use other services. Such applications have an additional investment function, where the client can open a deposit or a brokerage account.

Standalone investment apps – software for investing in stocks, options, or funds. It helps to find companies and start investing from $1. Some offer to trade stocks, securities, cryptocurrencies, and options without a commission and a minimum deposit.

Some of them give investors complete independence in making decisions. Others provide AI-based advisory bots that predict market conditions. The third app type combines manual and automated investment methods. The fourth type offers separate Human Advisor programs, where advice is given not by robots, but by financial experts.

Software for exchange-traded funds. These are programs for those who want to invest in exchange-traded funds. These are ready-made securities and asset portfolios. You can buy a share of such a fund – a share in its portfolio.

Main functions of mobile investment apps

As we have mentioned above, investment apps differ in at least three purposes. There are many more discrepancies. These programs have different target audiences, they solve different problems, and the tools for achieving goals also differ. But there are basic features that are required for each good software solution.

• Personal account.

A user must be able to register and create a personal account. Here they will be able to create a portfolio, track deposits, analyze the situation on the stock market, and manage assets.

Registration must be quick and clear: using a phone number, email, or a social network profile. Investment software should not scare away users at the first stage of their interaction.

• Money management tools.

By downloading a program, a client assumes that it will be easy and convenient for them to manage money and assets. Therefore, a variety of effective tools should be included in an app:

1. to manage currency, stocks, savings, and loans;
2. for data visualization (infographics, charts, or interactive columns);
3. setting up reports;
4. editing portfolios;
5. creating statistics for each asset and so on.

• Virtual assistant.

It is important to implement round-the-clock user support by providing them with a virtual assistant. A chatbot will tell you how to work with investment software. It will answer questions that arise along the way. Moreover, it can provide support 24/7, on weekends and holidays. Such an online assistant improves the quality of service and increases customer loyalty.

• Protection of user data.

Mobile investment apps, like any other financial software, work with clients’ data and money. The creators of such programs are responsible for protecting confidential information. Therefore, a software solution must have a strong security mechanism: end-to-end encryption, two-factor authentication, intrusion detection and prevention, protection against phishing attacks, and other features. Developers should also make sure that customers are aware of the security and data privacy policy.

• Push notifications.

Notifications provide feedback: 

• they remind users about promotions and discounts;
• inform about the status of an account;
• warn about the growth/fall of an asset;
• notify of suspicious activity when a scammer wants to hack into an account.

Users must be allowed to customize notifications individually and choose the type of alerts (traditional messages, pop-ups, or voice prompts). They can set such mailing parameters as frequency, the reason for alert, and a convenient time for viewing. Thanks to personalization, a user will feel comfortable and avoid intrusive mailing.

• Comparison of investment products.

To choose the best investment option, an investor needs to compare it with other ones. It is difficult to manually determine the differences between products, weigh the benefits, and assess the risks. A good mobile investment app offers tools for comparing alternatives. This is an important function because attachments are not goods that can be returned to the seller.

• Real-time statistics.

To successfully conduct financial activities, users must analyze statistics for each asset. An investor needs to compare market conditions and their impact on asset performance. For clarity, it is better to provide this information in a visual format: with the help of graphs, charts, and tables.

• Online transactions and withdrawal options.

An investment app must be based on a secure payment system: PayPal, Braintree, Stripe, or others. When choosing it, it is worth considering the preferences and location of the target audience. After all, individual payment gateways do not work in certain territories. Users should be able to transfer earned money to bank accounts.

• Search for assets and recommendations for deposits.

For convenience, allow users to sort assets by various parameters. This step will speed up navigation through a software product.

Another measure that will improve the process of making investment decisions is ratings of investment options and recommendations. Users need to see the most profitable investment options that have proven their effectiveness for several days, weeks, or months.

Other programs offer an assistant – a robot advisor. Such a bot automatically analyzes the stock market and gives recommendations on investing. Or it does it instead of a person if the latter allows the algorithm to perform independent actions.

How to build a mobile investment app

When developing investment software, it is important to consider its basic functions and choose an experienced IT service provider. An IT company will become a reliable partner and will offer the optimal technology stack. A development team will advise how to implement the functions of investment software in the best possible way. Professionals will organize the development process so that the product enters the market on time and in the best quality:

• They will research the market of investment apps.

Even if a customer has a vision of how a program should work, it is worth testing their idea on the market. After all, business ideas do not always reflect the real state of affairs. Specific information should be provided:

• what is the target audience;
• what user tasks the software solves;
• how the program helps clients achieve their goals;
• how this mobile solution differs from its competitors;
• how the software will generate income.

When such data is at hand, the customer will create an investment app that will be in demand and bring money.

• The team complies with the law.

A developer must consider the laws that regulate the activities of funds and exchanges or are responsible for protecting the personal data of users. The list of legal acts depends on the country where the program will operate. Therefore, it is necessary to find out from which institutions it is worth obtaining permissions so that the software can be legally distributed in the region.

• IT professionals gather software requirements.

A representative of the investment software development team – a Business Analyst – communicates with the customer and finds out the requirements for the software product. This specialist figures out what features the software should include and how it should work. Then they form a specification, where they translate the language of business into the technical language of programmers.

Based on this document, the Project Manager plans the work of the team. Developers and testers turn to SRS to write code correctly and check the quality of the program. Focusing on the specification, the customer monitors the progress of the IT partner. Without a specification, it is impossible to launch the mechanism of coordinated work and follow the plan.

• Developers create a minimum viable product (MVP).

An MVP is a “raw” version of a program. Such a program includes basic functions and can solve minimal user tasks. Such a product can be released to the market to make sure that the idea works.

The MVP gives a business significant benefits. In 1-3 months, the customer receives a product that can generate income from the start and save money that could be lost with a year of development of a useless product. If the target audience accepts the MVP, then the company continues to develop the software following the market reaction.

• The team releases an MVP.

The most important thing at this stage is to collect customer feedback and improve the product. You can collect feedback by using a survey maker. It is important to study analytics and user behavior, and find out what problems the audience faces to remove obstacles. Developers should clarify what users are missing in the mobile investment app and add new features. So gradually the program “acquires” useful functionality that improves interaction with customers.

• The IT company supports the product.

Working on a product is not only about implementing and improving functions. You need to maintain the old functionality, update libraries and frameworks, plan code refactoring, and regularly conduct security and performance testing.

Conclusion

Online investment through mobile apps is not only a current reality, but also a promising future. If you want to create software that helps people invest effectively and earn passive income, Andersen is here to help. The company’s experts have implemented more than 250 financial projects. Our specialists create software for mobile banking, insurance, mobile investment apps, and other programs.