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How to Create an Investment Platform

Why not further explore some ongoing market trends? The global wealthtech solution market is predicted to reach an estimated $90.0 million by 2030. One of its major growth drivers includes investment opportunities with low costs. Besides, there are investment apps, the consumer adoption of which has recently catalyzed. Google Data statistics reveals that investing and stock-related app queries have rocketed by 115%.

The evidence suggests that investment platforms, as well as trading apps, have already become an essential part of modern businesses. An IP can enhance your business growth by enabling you to: 

• Implement effective strategies to attract investors; 
• Broaden your financial possibilities; 
• Create unique product offerings and services that stand out among the existing ones; 
• Reduce expenditures; 
• Maximize efficiency via processes automation;  
• Assume control over all aspects of an investment process;
• Get rid of go-betweens;
• Provide your customers with stock operations essentials;
• Keep all your assets in one place;
• Reduce tax losses;
• Reach sensible investment decisions.

Continue reading to learn how to create an IP, what aspects to foresee, and what budget to draw up for this project.

Now that we have considered IPs key aspects, let’s skim through their classification. This will help you choose an IP type that matches your business goals. Below is a run-through of the typical types of investment platforms. 
 

We’re going to share some of SapientPro’s top practices, the application of which will accelerate the payoffs from the IP launch. We’ll share our time-proven development algorithm that will help you build a high-quality IP for your business.

Step 1. Define Objectives and Scope

Prior to setting goals we will determine your target users, study the positives and negatives of the existing platforms and help you gain insight into the legal requirements of the target markets (SEC regulations for the US and MiFID for the EU).

The initial essential stages of the investment platform development by our engineers involve: 

1. Laying out a detailed project brief for the next steps.
2. Outlining technical tasks of the project in cooperation with a business analyst.
3. Choosing aspects for implementation.
4. Preparing an estimate to provide our customer with a design development report as well as with the time frame for the project.

As evident, this approach ensures that project goals are well-defined and directly contribute to the strategic business outcomes expected from the platform and the initial budget is estimated. 

Step 2. Design and Planning

Following the concept framing, our developers proceed to producing an investment platform solution design. This includes a couple of steps, the first of them includes wireframing and prototyping. Wireframes are essential for:

• Preparing the project flowchart and wireframe;
• Verifying whether the engineers and the client share a mutual understanding of the tasks;
• Adopting approaches for interface building; 
• Creating the initial prototype design of the project.

The second step presupposes UI/UX design including:

• Creation of a user-centric design, which ensures clear navigation for coherent experience of all categories of users; 
• Prioritizing the platform’s accessibility, clarity and efficiency considering the sensitivity of financial transactions;  
• Creation of a responsive interface which is rich in features for the convenience of traders.

Step 3. Development

Investment platform development requires an analytical and integrated approach. Take a look at the IP development summary: 

1. Building a team, project planning and management: we assemble a team that will proactively address the project’s needs, draft project development plan, schedule sprints and deadlines;
2. The development phase: conducting project updates meetings, providing progress reports, and on-time sprints delivery;
3. Client liaison: client daily updates featuring detailed account of the progress achieved, engaging the client, their representative or product owner in decision making (we always explicitly explain the benefits and drawbacks of each approach);
4. Project testing: is conducted to ensure that all functionalities of the project perform adequately, project components interact smoothly, the project functions properly under load, stress or increased scalability, the bugs and issues are fully resolved; 
5. Project delivery: entails final testing, stress testing, project launch preparation. Next comes public deployment of the project (following the client’s approval), after-deployment testing and monitoring.

Here is some feedback from our clients:

For more customer reviews go to SapientPro’s profile on Clutch.

Step 4. Post-Launch Maintenance and Improvement

SapientPro is a trusted IT service provider and guarantees a long-term seamless performance of the investment platform. We rightly claim this, as the pros from our development team advocate the need to consistently monitor the software and make timely feature and safety updates. All you need is to hand these routine activities over to us. Our engineers are ready to provide total after-launch support together with: 

• Constant improvement: user feedback and newest market trends are the factors which contribute to recurrent updates of the platform. 
• Supervising the platform’s performance: this kind of monitoring IP’s functionality is executed using analytics and special tracking tools. 
• Scalability planning: makes it possible to manage the growing number of users and transactions. 

Step 5. Scaling and Expansion

Our experts suggest it is essential you ensure your investment platform’s scalability. This means standout IPs should solve investors needs and adjust to the company's online growth. Talking of expansion, it is mostly about customization when the IP is easy to change or add new things as: 

• New features: these are selected based on clients’ demands and changes in the market.
• Geographic spread: is about IP expansion into new markets where available.
• Product diversification: IP can be extended into related services or commercial products.

We know how to help you as you want to tailor the investment platform features to suit your goals and risk levels. As it stands, SapientPro is your business’s backup ensuring its sustainability.

Every web-based investment platform has to possess several features that will make an IP easy and accessible for its potential clients. These features are optional, though, and we normally customize them based on the client’s specifications and preferences.  Below you will find some tips that will guide you through investment platform development in case you are going to create one.

User-Admin Area

The user-admin area is designed to facilitate seamless interactions between users and the system. It consists of multiple elements that build up the general user experience.

Here’s the functionality you’ll have to consider in the user-admin area:

• Dashboard: the central interface where users can view and manage their investments, access essential tools, and see real-time data updates. This dashboard should be intuitive, displaying all relevant information efficiently.
• Account management: users must be able to manage their profile settings, security options (like two-factor authentication), and other personal details.
• Investment management: tools and functionalities that allow users to buy, sell, and monitor various investment products such as stocks, bonds, or cryptocurrencies.
• Reporting and analytics: provides users with detailed reports and analytics on their investment performance, tax statements, and other financial metrics.
• Notifications and alerts: customizable alerts related to market movements, transaction confirmations, and other important updates.

You might also want to focus on accessibility, ensuring the platform provides a convenient access even for people with disabilities. A typical standard to comply with is the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act). It’s a general norm to keep the design and functionality of your software simple, intuitive, and user-friendly.

Another point to consider is customization. Allow users to customize the layout and types of information they receive, tailoring the user experience to their preferences. This increases satisfaction and lets your users choose what they want to work with.

Safety and Security

Nothing can be more important than the safety of your money in financial operations. Consider robust security measures for your IP. It’s best if they include: 

• Encryption and data security: the transit of data between the user’s device and the IP’s servers must be protected from unauthorized access and data breaches. 
• Two-factor authentication: entails two forms of users’ identification, like a password and a code. For top security, biometric authentication (facial recognition or fingerprint) is strongly recommended. 
• Regulatory compliance: prevents fraud and identity theft through Know Your Customer (KYC) procedures. This instrument can also pinpoint money laundering activities. It also meets the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
• Account protection: consists of several levels. There is detection of suspicious or unauthorized activities, of which the users are instantly notified. Only authorized account owners can seek and regain account access. This can be achieved by using backup codes. If the IP deals with cryptocurrencies, offering cold storage is compulsory.

There will certainly arise a need for the security of IP communication channels, for instance, file uploads must remain safe from unauthorized access. For the same reason privacy protection becomes an absolute necessity and involves collecting minimal data from users and the possibility of anonymous transactions.

Client Support

Any investment platform benefits from adequate client support: it helps build up the users’ trust and gains them the sense of fulfillment. Here are some prerequisites an IP should offer as a part of client support policy:

• 24/7 support through multiple channels: live chats to get prompt answers, emails to send out documents, phone support for direct communication, in-app messaging to receive help by the IP’s mobile app. Support services provided in various languages together with personalized updates will give the IP some extra credit.   
• Self-service options: include FAQ section where users can get quick answers, a set of educational materials like webinars and tutorials, and community forums for users and platform experts.   
• Feedback mechanisms: users might want to share some feedback on their work with the platform – this activity can indicate the platform’s weak points. The level of users’ satisfaction should be controlled too, through regular surveys. Besides, users should be encouraged to suggest improvements to the IP.
• Crisis management: providing contact channels and teams all set for emergencies will secure two-way communication and help work out early solutions.

Another means of forming users’ positive experience with the IP is accessibility of support channels to special-needs clients. Personalized assistance provided to clients with compelling needs will certainly become an advantage.

Up-to-Date Information

Stockholders now use investment platforms for financial operations and data analysis. Thus, it is one of IP’s key responsibilities to timely inform them about important stock changes and new assets. This can be achieved by certain expedients:

• Real-time market data: allows users to respond to market dynamics. The IP can offer them displays of live Forex rates, live stock prices, and real-time prices on commodities.
• Financial indicators: a calendar of upcoming trading events, their analysis, and interpretation are the examples of economic indicators. VIX (volatility index) and Greed & Fear Index are among volatility and market sentiment indicators. The updates on their rates must be up-to-the-minute, helping users detect current market conditions.
• Interest rates and bond market updates: the Treasury yield curves and Central Bank announcements will brief users on changes in monetary policies around the world. 
• Customizable dashboards: users might gain from personalized widgets, watch lists and heatmaps – all of these must be relevant to their own marketing strategies.
• Reports and filings: it’s convenient for the users to have immediate access to SEC (securities and exchange commission) filings, analyst ratings, and forecasts right upon their release.

Providing financial experts’ commentary on market developments is altogether justified, and so is using AI for the analysis of social media trends. 

To recap, any investment platform’s features can be presented in outline:

The abovementioned screenshots have been taken from Binance's blog for educational reasons.

SapientPro is your reliable partner when it comes to creating an investment platform for your business. Our team of 70+ professionals has been developing top-tier solutions since 2017, achieving an average rating of 4.9/5 on Clutch.

You’ll get a powerful investment platform available across all platforms: desktop, mobile, and web. Our experts will help you implement any feature and integrate all required tools with ease, ensuring you get a top-quality product that helps your company grow.

Here is how our customers review their collaboration with SapientPro.

Check out all our reviews and case studies here.

Contact us now to discuss your project and get an estimate.

According to the general consensus, Investment Platform development is a profitable project to make. Yet, you should be aware of the precise cost. Figures will vary depending on such factors as:

• Platforms that the system will run on: this can be a website or a website together with a mobile app;
• Features list;
• Expected project load which affects the time required to build the project’s infrastructure;
• The number of specialists on the development team;
• Design complexity.

Evidently, this list can be extended depending on the client’s unique request.

Compare the average app development costs provided by 3 business aggregators: 

1. Clutch $10,000 to $49,999. 
2. GoodFirms $34,560 to $60,480. 
3. DesignRush $40,000 to $75,000.

Need professional help to get a detailed cost breakdown? 

Do not hesitate to contact SapientPro’s experts.

The increased popularity of investment platforms & apps mirrors the expansion of FinTech innovation and market growth. The most attractive features of IPs are their safety, new ways to invest, easy user experience, and customization. They are smart tools to boost your project’s earning capacity.

Team up with SapientPro – your trusted software development company. Our tech-savvy engineers will always back you up with their years of experience in creating high-quality products and providing consulting services for SMEs and enterprises. Working with us on your next project will monetize your business and raise your revenue.