Adding A Mobile App To An Existing Product Lineup

Scoping a MVP

Tickmill's goal for the mobile app was to support all of the same functions as their desktop version does. Nevertheless, they also knew that it would take much longer to develop. The Mooncascade team and Tickmill agreed to build a ‘Minimum Viable Product’ (or ‘MVP’) to shorten the time to market and gain user insights quickly.

Back-end Setup

Tickmill already had an existing back-end and working website. Adding a mobile app meant we needed to analyse their existing set-up to see whether their back-end could support their new product. Tickmill had to ensure that their set-up catered to different operating systems and countries and complied with various sets of legislation. Our back-end analysis showed that their set-up needed to be reworked to support several front-end solutions such as their multiple websites, iOS app, and Android app.

KYC & AML Requirements

FinTech apps must comply with extra requirements that other non-financial apps do not need to. Since Tickmill already had measures to prevent financial crime in place on their website, we could re-use the heart of those existing procedures. During the development process, we focused on delivering a strong UX / UI experience for them. The solution for Tickmill’s mobile app used the same process as their website. However, the app’s UX and UI were optimised to be mobile-friendly and intuitive for the end-users. The design took advantage of phone functionality where possible to add practical quality-of-life features – such as the ability to take a picture of a user’s identity card. This design keeps user drop-off rates for Tickmill’s app as low as possible.

Third-Party Integration Documentation

FinTech apps usually have quite a few third-party integrations to deal with like payment providers, sign-in and customer verification, email address and phone number verification, customer support, and so forth. With these different third-party integrations to include, many developers and product managers get lost in the volume of information needing to be shared with internal stakeholders and development teams. Well-structured and clear documentation with schematic visualisations increases efficiency. Mooncascade provided the Tickmill team with detailed documentation of all third-party integrations. Without it, working on an existing product for Tickmill would require extra time for reviewing and understanding the code before adding or modifying it effectively to complete future tasks.

Security

Unauthorised access is always the main concern for FinTech product security. This means preventing any malicious user or software from gaining access to sensitive data - such as names, email addresses, bank account details. etc. - by working around, evading, or disabling the existing security measures. The penetration test was carried out to measure the feasibility of systems or end-user compromise and evaluate the consequences of such incidents.

Code Reviews & QA

Both companies - Tickmill and Mooncascade - analysed the data and shared information to identify impactful opportunities to continuously improve development and delivery. We used findings from one sprint to inform or improve upon the next one. Testing happened continuously throughout the development process, so there would be a better transfer from one iteration to another. Issues were solved sooner in the sprint, and developers identified the most important features and functions.

Project Management

Looking back on the project, Tickmill remarked that one of the best things about working with Mooncascade was the project management, the structure provided, and how it allowed everyone involved to stay informed and in control of the project. Our team used scheduled 2-week sprints, sprint reviews with demos, and feedback sessions for this project. These feedback sessions allowed for productive collaboration between Tickmill’s team and ours. Our Agile development methodologies center around iterative development, where requirements and solutions evolve through collaboration. We believe Agile allows our teams to deliver value faster and with excellent quality and predictability.

Communication

Successfully adding a mobile app to your product or service lineup requires contributions from numerous stakeholders. It is paramount to build a culture of trust, teamwork, and information sharing. Further, each app requirement possesses individual features that function in unison with many other components being developed by various team members. Excellent communication with those individuals is essential to ensure that each separate feature works as part of the whole.​ Tickmill brought unique insights regarding their product. In contrast, we offered our wealth of experience in FinTech mobile app development and mobile app development specifically.