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Banking and financial services are one of the most lucrative sectors of the IT industry. The market size of the BFSI sector is estimated to be currently at $35.3 billion. In comparison, it is expected to grow to $66.02 billion by 2026. Banking software helps customers connect with their respective bank branches from anywhere. Multi-channel banking software helps customers complete their transactions through multiple mediums like mobile, internet, and branch.
Banking software provides a high level of convenience to the customers, which in turn helps increase the banks’ customer base. Many banks and financial institutions want to build banking software to fulfill the needs of their clients but they don’t know where to start. As a leading software development company, we have tried to address this as well as other questions about banking software development. In this guide, the banking and financial institutions will find the A to Z of building efficient banking software for their project needs.
Table of Contents
With global digitalization, barely, you will find a person who doesn’t know mobile banking and internet banking or shows reluctance to use it. Especially, Millennials expect the digital transformation in banks and financial services at the least, which is considered the major driving force that’s accelerating the shift to digital banking software development solutions.
In fact, the people who previously preferred traditional banking have learned a new way of interaction through mobile banking apps due to the lockdown imposed during the pandemic. With improved security measures, the reluctance for mobile banking is melting into warm adoption for financial matters handling. People over the age of 60 are the best instance of it who have used mobile banking first time after the pandemic and now, prefer to continue using it.
Post-covid, one-third of banking institutions are looking to hire remote developers to join the gold rush- artificial intelligence powered banking software and application development. In this case, if you decide to launch the banking software now, it allows you to leapfrog the competition.
The growth of the banking sector has accelerated in the digital age. Today customers rarely need to visit the bank as most of the banking operations are completed with the help of mobile banking app or by logging on to the online bank portal.
The global banking software market was estimated to be valued at around $9.84 billion in 2020 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 7.8% till 2028.
There is a wide range of banking software available in the market today. While going for readymade banking solutions, businesses need to choose a solution that will fit well based on their requirements. Mentioned below are some of the most successful banking software.
Mobile banking software development brings certain challenges to banks in the digital transformation journey. Here’s the set of challenges that banks face while adapting new reality of digital disruption.
Fintech app development company that has served SMBs to large-sized financial institutions can help banks and financial institutions to address the challenges with the right mix of people, processes, and planning.
Banks are fast digitizing themselves by equipping themselves with high-quality software. Banking software development makes the lives of banks as well as their users easy in a lot of ways. We have listed some of the major benefits of using banking software.
Multiple kinds of banking software are present in a bank. Let us discuss the main ones.
Software for managing the financial operations and transactions consists of the following features
The software that manages the financial operations and transactions provides operational control to the bank authorities. These software also provides a wide array of financial management tools that help the bank authorities in processes like planning, budgeting, and management accounting. Such software provides a high level of transparency in the overall banking system and helps the managers get a coordinated response from all the stakeholders.
Document management software significantly reduces the paperwork of bank executives. To ease the process of document management, banks use document management software. Banking document management software allows bank management to free up human resources by automating the tedious process of banking document management.
The software can automate all the processes associated with the compilation of memos, administrative reports, loan papers, customer KYC documents, etc. Banking documentation software drastically reduces the time spent on paperwork. Many banks provide their customers with the ease of uploading their documents from their mobile banking apps.
The administrative management software in a banking institution helps the managers manage the bank better. The software is concerned with the overall administration of the bank, which includes the following areas
Robust administrative management software boosts the administrative efficiency of the banking system. The enhanced administrative efficiency helps the bank save countless hours which translates into savings in dollar terms. The managers can focus on high-priority projects as the administrative software saves time by taking care of the low-priority ones.
The CRM of a banking system is a combination of modules that ensures the smooth interaction of the banking system with the customers. The banking CRM systems typically include the following modules
The CRM of a banking system covers all the stages of the interaction right from attracting the customers to banking to after-sales service. The CRM systems help to easily interact with the customers, identify their pain points, and suggest measures to improve the communication process based on this analysis.
CRM systems help the bank deliver personalized service to its clients, which helps boost customer engagement levels. Talking about user engagement, we think you would love to know how mobile banking apps can help elevate the user experience.
Full-fledged banking software can be used by banks for their internal purposes. Nevertheless, mobile banking software can be developed and customized to their customers. The mobile banking application is quicker and provides all banking services to the user on the go.
For instance, a user can transfer money, check their balance, apply for a new checkbook, apply for debit card and credit card, apply for a loan, QR code scanning for payment, and avail of services they like.
Like every industry, the banking and financial services industry is also going through disruptive changes. Technological innovations will shape the future of the banking industry. We have listed below some of the major trends that will disrupt the banking industry in the near future.
A rising trend in the banking sector is contactless payment. With micro-chip-enabled credit cards and debit cards, customers do not need to go through the hassle of remembering the passcode and entering it every time they want to pay.
Banking software will need to upgrade itself to provide the back-end for contactless payments. To provide contactless payments, the banking software will need to update the balance in real-time without compromising the security of the transaction.
The BFSI (Banking and Financial Services Industry) has been at the forefront of adopting digital technologies like Machine Learning. There are many ML-based technologies already in use in the banking sector. The ACD (Alternative Credit Decision-Making System) utilizes the power of ML to help bank executives make correct decisions regarding loan disbursals.
Sophisticated Machine Learning algorithms collect and analyze customers’ data to predict their needs and provide the customers with the correct products at the correct time. Intelligent chatbots are deployed by many banks to solve the queries of their customers 24×7.
ML algorithms alert the concerned authorities when they diverge from normal customer transaction behavior saving security breaches. Research suggests that ML and other AI technologies in banking will help banks trillion in operating costs by 2030 save $1 trillion in operating costs by 2030.
Generative AI benefits can transform banking sector. This advanced form of artificial intelligence can create new content and ideas, offering innovative solutions for the banking sector. For instance, Generative AI can be used to develop personalized financial advice for customers, tailoring suggestions based on individual financial behaviors and goals.
Moreover, Generative AI in banking enhances fraud detection and prevention by analyzing patterns and generating scenarios to identify potential threats. Banks are also leveraging this technology to create more efficient and secure processes, such as automating document generation and enhancing customer service with more intuitive and responsive AI-driven interactions.
Blockchain adoption has picked up speed in recent times. The global Blockchain market is estimated to generate revenue of more than $20 billion by 2024. In the banking system, there are a lot of middlemen involved in every transaction. These middlemen not only charge money, they also make the process slow.
Blockchain is a decentralized and secure technology that eliminates these middlemen and makes the process faster and cheaper. Adding to the decentralized finances is the use of web3 in fintech which has been revolutionizing every aspect of finance sector right from securing the data, and making payments to ensuring smart contracts.
Blockchain stores data about every transaction right from its moment of inception and provides water-tight security to the data. It is impossible to modify or forge previous data entries. The transparency and added security that Blockchain provides help banks with auditing and accounting.
Financial transactions demand security and what better way to provide security from unauthorized transactions than to link these transactions with biometrics? Since Apple included fingerprint authentication into iPhones, many banks all over the world integrated fingerprint authentication into their banking systems.
Apart from fingerprint sensors, other biometric technologies like retina scanners, voice pattern scans, and face scans are also rising. Many mobile banking applications provide log-in options through biometrics. This helps the users quickly register or log in to the portal and avail of banking services.
The banking and financial institutions opt for cloud-native software development from scratch or migration to the cloud to create a centralized and scalable database that brings a plethora of opportunities. It simplifies data access in real-time and facilitates settlements without needing to sign the document offline. Also, it enables the execution of fraud detection programs and prevents data sharing for anti-money laundering.
Data analytics comprises big data analytics, advanced analytics, and business intelligence to unlock the potential of enormous data that banks are generating every second. The technology analyzes customer data at every touchpoint to deliver personalized banking services. The performance dashboards and detailed compliance reports illustrate the status of financial institutions. Enhancing the products and services with data-driven insights is an add-on. Partner with the best data engineering services provider to leverage data analytics for your business growth.
An ERP software act as a central system to best manage the data for all the banking processes across various departments. Thereby it facilitates a single source of truth to derive insightful data analytics, which ultimately helps banks to improve their services. For instance, banks can get a 360-degree view of the customers and enable smooth data flow.
Installing movement sensors at physical banks allows executives to decide which branches have more visitors so that they can close the branches accordingly. The sensors and camera installation at ATMs help in preventing fraud and forecasting cash shortages. IoT technology keeps banking facilities in sync with digital infrastructure.
The steps of building banking software are more or less similar to the steps of building any software or mobile app. Let us have a look at the various steps involved in building banking software;
Not just for banking software, internet banking website, or mobile banking app but one needs to have a definite purpose before building any kind of software. Before starting work on building a banking application, the developers must ask the following questions;
Once the purpose is established, the dedicated banking software developers proceed towards the next step; research, and feasibility analysis.
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The developers start by conducting thorough market research. The research includes finding the existing examples of the product that they want to build.
Once the preliminary research is over, the application developers proceed to conduct a feasibility analysis. The feasibility analysis ascertains whether it makes sense to move ahead with the project or not. Feasibility analysis can also help the developers remove unnecessary things from the project.
While conducting a feasibility analysis, the developers must analyze the following 4 elements;
Before proceeding with the project, the developers must conduct a technical feasibility analysis of the project. The technical feasibility analysis checks whether the necessary technical resources are available for the mobile banking project or not.
Financial feasibility analysis analyzes whether it makes financial sense to develop the software. A thorough cost-benefit analysis will enable the developers to estimate the financial viability of the project accurately. This is the stage where unnecessary things like extra features in banking mobile applications or banking software can be eliminated.
This is the stage of feasibility analysis where the developers analyze whether the project can be completed within the stipulated period or not. The developers break down each software development step and analyze the time required to complete each phase in this stage.
This stage focuses on the operational aspects of the project like maintenance, the team required, support to be provided after the development of banking software is complete, and so on.
The developers must conduct extensive research and feasibility analysis before moving ahead with the banking software project. This is when the developers must collect as much data as possible and thoroughly analyze the four elements.
Once the first two steps are complete, the developers would have had a fair bit of idea about their goal and the project’s feasibility. In the third step, the developers need to select the best platform for their software. Mobile banking application software requires a secure platform to prevent fraudulent transactions and malware attacks.
While selecting the platform, the developers must ensure that the selected platform corresponds to the requirements and goals in the best way. Once the platform is selected, the next decision to make is to select the technology stack for banking software solutions.
In this stage, the tech experts select the appropriate programming languages, database systems, and frameworks according to the banking software to be developed. Technology experts select the technology stack according to the purpose and utilization of the software and the kind of end-user they are catering to.
For instance, digital banking applications would utilize technologies like PHP, MySQL, C, and C++. The developers must ensure that the technologies that they select are the most appropriate ones for their banking app development projects.
Creating a technical specification document for the banking software is the next step in the process. The technical specification document is a detailed technical description of the required banking app. The document tries to list the goals of a project, its milestones, the vital elements, and other essential details of the project in one place.
For banking mobile solutions, the first thing to write in a technical specification document would be a summary. The summary is similar to writing an abstract in an academic paper which summarizes the entire paper. The summary is written first so that anyone reading the technical specification document doesn’t need to go through the entire paper to get the gist of the matter.
The summary provides the following information to the reader
Once the summary is complete, the next step would be to add the background information. This section talks about why the project was initiated in the first place and describes the key concept of the project. The next step would be to provide a detailed working plan for the project.
While preparing the budget, the development company takes into consideration that developing financial software usually costs more because such software tends to be more complex and it takes a lot of time and effort on the part of the developers. Mobile banking app solutions are comparatively larger in size and complexity; hence the cost of developing banking software could be a bit high.
Banks must make sure that the budget they keep is attractive enough for leading banking software developers to quote. It is difficult for banks to estimate the budget required to build banking software correctly. It is best to consult a professional software development team with the requirements to have a more accurate insight into the budget.
While setting the budget, it is important to note that the initial estimate is just approximate. At times when the project is quite a large one, the final budget may differ a little from the initial estimate. So it is better to have a margin of safety in the budget. The margin of safety can be anywhere between 10-20% of the budget. This is just to ensure that the businesses have all the required features integrated based on the trends to withstand the competition and grow better.
Once the budget is planned, it is time to move to the last step, finding the best banking software developers.
Picking the wrong banking software development company can prove to be a disaster for the project. Incompetent software developers will waste a lot of time and money and deliver lousy software, which will ultimately ruin the reputation of the bank.
The following things will aid a bank in selecting the best software developers from the software development service providing company and build their own team of software development experts or mobile app development team;
Top 7 question checklist before hiring a software or app development company
Banking is a high-stakes industry as even a small mistake can blow out of proportion and harm the business of the bank. This is why it can prove risky to hire software developers who haven’t worked on a similar project.
Before giving the project, the banks must assess whether the software developers have successfully delivered such a huge software in the past and which industries have they developed the apps for and it will be better if they have similar experience in building an online banking solution.
The technical skills of the software development company must match the technology stack required to build the particular banking software.
For instance, if the banking software demands expertise in C++, then there is no point in working with a company that doesn’t have experienced C++ developers. Likewise, mobile banking solutions would require native (Android or iOS developers) or cross-platform developers.
Now that we have a look at the things to consider while selecting the best banking software development company, let’s have a glance at the cost of developing banking software.
The cost of building banking software depends on two major factors;
The cost of mobile banking software development with basic features will be much less than the cost of banking software with lots of advanced features.
For instance, the cost of developing internal banking software which will be used only by the bank’s employees and has only a few basic features like generating reports, and logging attendance of the banking employees will be less.
While the cost of developing a retail customer-facing banking software, that allows the bank’s customers to access their bank accounts digitally and perform actions like opening a bank account and conducting transactions, would be much higher. As the number and level of features rise, so does the cost.
The location of the software developers also has an overbearing effect on the cost of developing banking software. Hiring a software development company from North America and Europe can prove to be 5-6 times more expensive than hiring one from India. This is because of the difference in the hourly wages that these remote companies charge.
Depending upon the complexity of the features and the development company’s location, the cost of building a banking software development can range anywhere between $30,000- 130,000.
There are some basic features that a banking software should have based on the different types of users
Apart from the basic features, the banks can also consider adding the following features that can help them serve their customers in a better manner.
According to a report published by Accenture, cyber crime costs financial institutions around $18.3 million annually. Banking software cannot afford to be complacent with security as the problems that arise due to lapse in security can prove to be disastrous for the bank as well as its customers.
The first step to ensure robust security in the banking software is at the sign-in page. The banking software developers must ensure that the sign-in details of the customers are encrypted according to the most robust encryption standards. The sign-in process must be both fast and secure so that the users do not feel the process to be cumbersome and also have peace of mind that the process is secure.
Sophisticated AI algorithms can help banks detect fraudulent transactions in a user’s account. The AI system assesses millions of transactions and identifies a pattern. The AI algorithm then alerts the users as well as the bankers whenever it finds out a transaction that significantly deviates from the usual pattern of the user.
Peer-to-peer or P2P payments, as they are popularly known, allow the bank’s customers to send money directly to another user’s account. The popularity of P2P payments has grown and according to a report by globenewswire the market for P2P payments is expected to grow to the value of 4.4 trillion by 2027. While many third-party P2P applications are available in the market like Paypal, Stripe, and Google Pay, many users would prefer the security and convenience of banking software as the bank would directly oversee the fund transfer.
Another benefit that can lure the users to do P2P payments directly with the bank is that, unlike third-party vendors, most banks do not charge hefty payment transfer fees for facilitating these payments.
The growth of a bank relies on how well the bank can serve its customers. Successful banks know this and go the extra mile to provide excellent customer service with a personalized approach to their clients.
AI Chatbots can help banks address the concerns of the customers 24×7. The Chatbots ensure that bank customers do not need to wait for long telephonic queues when they want to resolve their queries. The Chatbot will ask simple questions to the customers and based on their response, will answer their queries.
In case the Chatbot is unable to resolve the query of the customer, and then it will assign the task to a human customer care executive. The Chatbot will provide the chat history to the customer care executive who will help the executive understand the problem and save frustration for the customer as the customer won’t need to repeat the problem.
Voice search is one of the most important trends in the tech world currently. According to a PWC report, around 7 out of 10 consumers prefer to use voice search to buy something rather than type it. Voice-assisted banking is gaining prominence in banking circles.
As more people buy smart speakers, they are warming up to the idea of voice-assisted banking. According to a poll conducted by Fiserv, the perception towards voice-assisted banking is changing among US consumers.
Voice technology is an important part of many modern-day FinTech apps and software. Many consider it to be one of the next-generation banking technologies. Financial institutions are not only using voice technology for providing security to their users, but they are also using it to enhance the customer experience.
Many banks provide voice-enabled services to their clients. Using voice-enabled technologies, the banks provide essential services like checking account balances, basic customer queries, and other simple tasks. By using voice technologies, the banks are reducing the work of human executives so that they can focus on other high-value tasks.
Functionality that helps users track their spendings can prove beneficial for the banking software users also. The feature should allow the users to set saving goals.
Analytical customized charts are a great way to demonstrate the progress towards the goal. The developers should include spending on different categories in the banking software, which will help the bank’s customers track their spending on various things.
Solve the age-old problem of bill splitting when it requires users to pay for anything together in real-time. Adding this feature gives a boost to your mobile banking app as customers are increasingly looking for the same feature for splitting entertainment costs, group trips, group gifts, and others.
Allow users to withdraw cash without having any card. The QR code or multi-factor authentication through a mobile app or software allows users to connect and access ATMs without needing to carry cards in their wallets.
The banking applications include a geolocation application that pinpoints the nearby ATMs or bank branches. Also, related details such as operating hours, currency exchange rates, and cash availability make reaching out to the ATM hassle-free.
While selecting the technology stack for banking software, the developers must strike a proper balance between convenience and security. Banks and financial institutions should help companies that provide banking software development services to select the most appropriate technology stack according to their requirements.
We have mentioned below a technology stack for banking software that can act as a good reference point.
Programming languages:
Frameworks:
Databases:
Data privacy and security regulations are created to prevent identity theft, financial fraud, and other cyberattacks that make the app vulnerable. Let’s dig into the detail of the rules and regulations imposed by various geographical nations to ensure the highest security and privacy.
Despite following the latest trends for technology stack selection, improved security, and wow experience delivery, it’s not easy for banks to increase user outreach with a simple fintech app development. There are a couple of things that must be considered during mobile banking software development to realize success.
Banking is a vital part of our lives and like everything else; we depend a lot on software to fulfill our banking needs. Banking software development is a complex process and even a small mistake can prove to be disastrous for the bank’s reputation.
We, at Prismetric, have more than a decade of experience in developing state-of-the-art IT solutions for our clients located worldwide. Our team is competent enough to address any challenge as we hand-picked talented and experienced developers from the entire industry. Our team has the required expertise and experience to build high-quality Banking software development solutions.
Prismetric team has good expertise with mobile banking software development and thus can guide you through all the phases of software development namely research and planning, prototype creation, UI/UX designing, technology stack selection, coding, and third-party integration to final launch. On top of that, they have a team of dedicated resources and a team with apt knowledge to take care of your need regarding banking-related data privacy and security guidelines in different countries.
The mobile banking software that provides convenience on the one hand brings a few challenges to the table such as protecting and securing user data, complying with regulations, keeping up with user expectations, stepping in with the latest trends, and getting the right development partner.
At first launching MVP with a set of basic features is a good idea to test the market response. Later, banking organizations should opt to gradually enhance the mobile software app with advanced features that delivers experience in addition to convenience. The advanced features such as security alerts, QR code payment, cardless ATM access, split bills, AI-based chat, and peer-to-peer transactions facilitate the same and allow banks to retain existing customers.
The banking app development cost typically ranges between $20,000-$40,000 for a basic app. However, to build banking software with various user types and advanced features the budget to set aside will be $10,000. This is a ballpark figure as the software development cost estimation relies on several technical factors such as the number of features, advanced tech stack usage, design complexity, number of platforms, and developers’ location. In addition to this, there might be many non-technical aspects such as the processes followed by the bank, the documentation procedures, different types of accounts, and many more.
He is the Co-Founder and CEO of Prismetric . An enthusiastic entrepreneur, interested to discuss new app ideas, rich gadget tricks and trends, and admires signature tech business styles to readily embrace. He enjoys learning most modern app crafting methods, exploring smart technologies and passionate about writing his thoughts too. Inventions related to mobile and software technology inspire Ashish and he likes to inspire the like-minded community through the finesse of his work.
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