Stock trading app development: a 25% increase in new brokerage and investment account openings

Innowise developed a stock trading mobile app for iOS and Android, featuring real-time market analysis, portfolio management, and easy access to trading tools.

Customer

Industry

Banking

Region

Europe

Client since

2021

Our client is a leading European bank that offers comprehensive trading services, such as brokerage accounts, stock buy, sell, and exchange, order execution, and investment portfolio management.

Detailed information about the client cannot be disclosed under the provisions of the NDA.

Challenge

As part of its business expansion, the bank required the development of an all-in-one stock trading mobile app for novice investors

The bank aimed to expand its business by introducing new services to its clients. One of the transformation ideas was to create a brokerage platform and the respective mobile application equipped with straightforward trading tools. Given that the app is aimed at novice investors, the primary challenge was to design an intuitive and user-friendly interface to execute financial transactions with just a few taps.

The client sought a trading mobile app that would serve as an all-in-one solution featuring essential functionalities like opening new user brokerage accounts, depositing and withdrawing money to and from the client’s brokerage account, executing trading operations, performing currency exchange deals, and providing informational services and analytics.

Solution

A user-friendly application built on a modern technology stack that offers comprehensive features for stock trading

Innowise developed a comprehensive stock trading mobile app that incorporates all the features requested by the client. As we developed the application from scratch, our engineers offered the bank to adopt new technology stacks (Kubernetes cluster, microservice architecture, CI/CD, ESB, and others ) to increase the application’s productivity and functionality and perform additional third-party integrations.

Our developers streamlined the account registration and verification process. Users can complete required forms, such as W8, FATCA/CRS, and others, directly within the application. All documents can be electronically signed using EDS.

Primary features

Brokerage account opening: users can open various types of brokerage accounts depending on their trading needs and requirements.

Security and authentication: 2FA requires users to verify their identity through a code sent to their mobile device, in addition to their password. A biometric login allows users to access their accounts using fingerprint or facial recognition.

Deposits and withdrawals: deposits and withdrawals can be made using credit/debit cards, wire transfers, and e-wallets. The application also allows users to make instant transfers.

Built-in calendar: the calendar notifies users about the dates of dividend payments and bond coupon issuance. Users can also set up regular funding schedules for investments.

Portfolio management: users can review their portfolios, reevaluate assets in different currencies, and categorize them by class (equity, fixed income, derivatives).

Smart asset filters: filters allow users to sort securities by instrument identifiers, asset class, industry, market sector, volatility, and other parameters.

Real-time market data and analytics: users have instant access to current bid and ask prices, as well as last traded prices for financial instruments (real-time OHLC data). They can also use customizable charts, review information on security redemption possibilities, and get continuous updates on price changes, volume, and other key metrics without the need for manual refresh.

Transaction history: users can track their transactions within selected periods and review the list of orders they placed.

Margin trading information: users can utilize borrowed money to buy assets, view the list of securities available for margin trading, and see available margin leverage.

Notifications: users can customize in-app alerts and push notifications for account activity, price changes, and news.

Initial offerings

We incorporated a set of stock exchange offerings upon the bank’s request. Some of them are available on an exclusive early-stage basis.

IPOs: the bank’s users can access the issuer’s information and submit applications to participate in the IPO.

Bond offers: users can apply for bond offers via the app and track the status of their application.

Custom investment strategies: users can invest in portfolios prepared specifically for them by the bank’s asset managers.

Third-party integrations

Our team implemented all third-party integrations requested by the bank:

Robo advising: users can get personalized investment advice based on their profiles and specific goals. The integration allows for the automated creation of diversified portfolios using a mix of stocks, ETFs, bonds, and other assets.

News feeds: users get access to various financial news platforms to receive relevant, real-time news updates directly within the app.

Brokerage API Integration: the app connects with multiple brokerage firms via APIs and provides access to various financial instruments (stocks, bonds, mutual funds, ETFs, and options).

Integration with MetaStock and Trading view: the integration provides access to charting and technical analysis tools.

QA improvements

Throughout development, we performed functional testing and used automated testing tools to cover a wide range of scenarios and verify that each feature worked flawlessly. We used Espresso (for Android) and XCTest (for iOS) to test individual code components and catch bugs early in development. We performed automated UI testing with Appium to simulate user interactions. With Apache JMeter, we performed stress testing to make sure that the application can handle high traffic and maintain performance under load.

Technologies

Platforms

iOS/Android

Front-end

Swift (iOS) and Kotlin (Android)

Back-end

JavaScript and React

Database

MySQL

Process

We started the process by thoroughly studying the bank’s business, collecting requirements, and negotiating expected deliverables and proposed solutions. We assigned a project manager as the single point of contact responsible for communication during the development stage.

We adopted an Agile methodology to manage the project and organized the work into two-week sprints. Each iteration began with a detailed planning session, during which tasks were identified and assigned to specific team members. Progress was tracked through daily stand-up meetings.

Our project manager held weekly Skype calls with the client to update them on key project milestones and fine-tune the next steps as necessary. This regular communication kept the client informed and involved in decision-making. From the first day of coding, we shared our code with the client via GIT/Bitbucket to provide a clear view of the development process.

During the sprints, our engineers developed and integrated the required features into the stock trading mobile app. We started the process by designing and developing the app’s architecture and crafted a scalable and robust framework capable of supporting the app’s complex functionalities.

Our DevOps team managed the continuous integration and deployment pipelines to make sure that code was regularly merged, tested, and deployed without disruptions. They also oversaw infrastructure management, automated testing environments, and system performance monitoring to guarantee a smooth transition from development to production.

Team

Project Manager

Back-End Developers

Front-End Developer

QA Specialists

DevOps Engineers

Results

The number of new brokerage and investment accounts exceeded 2,000, reflecting a 25% year-on-year growth

Within three months of the launch, the application began to show impressive user activity. During this period, the app facilitated over 5,000 deals and processed over 3,000 requests for securities transactions. The app’s popularity continued to increase throughout its first year of operation. By February 2023, the number of new brokerage and investment accounts exceeded 2,000, reflecting a 25% year-on-year growth.

Project duration

January 2021 - February 2022

5,000+

deals during the first three months

25%

increase in the number of new brokerage and investment accounts

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