How To Develop A Secure Mobile Banking App?

• By Prasanna Simhadri
• 21-08-2023
• Mobile App Development

Wallets, deposit slips, withdrawal forms, and loan processing documents, are all former traditional stuffs of the past. In this digital age, everything is digitized and banking & financial services are no exceptions. Yes, the banking and finance industry is one of the sectors that is increasingly adopting mobile banking solutions.

Mobile banking apps have been completely transforming the way banks and customers connect. Mobile Banking has become the handiest solution for people to access a range of banking services right from their place without reaching the physical locations of banks. For accessing bank accounts, funds transfers, investments, balance checks, bill payments, and other services, mobile banking apps are the best buddies for people.

According to the market research, here are a few stats on mobile banking apps:

• According to the marker research reports, the global market value of the mobile banking sector is anticipated reach approximately $700 million in 2022 to over $1,870 million by 2030 at a compound annual growth rate of 11%.
• Customer support services through intelligent chatbots as a trend, and mobile banking app investments are anticipated to increase rapidly in the coming years.
• 90% of smartphone users use banking apps to better manage their banking accounts
• 95% of banking app users unlock their apps for checking their balance and transactions
• Driven by end-to-end encryption, approximately $1 trillion in online payments through banking apps have been recorded during the year
• Online investments in stocks/ETFs/Options or trading through Fintech apps has become a trend worldwide and millions of investments were been exchanging over a secured platform.

These are just a few basic stats on mobile banking apps. The banking and financial sector is investing in Fintech app development for offering faster, more convenient, and more personalized services to their customers.

In this article, we would like to give you brief information on the key roles of mobile banking apps, the top benefits of banking solutions for individuals and banks, and the significant steps that you must consider to develop a highly secured banking solution.

To begin with, let’s take a look at the significant roles that are making mobile banking apps more popular and user-friendly in this digital landscape.

Paybacks For Banks On Investing In Mobile App Development

Why Should Every Bank Or FinTech Organization Have A Mobile App?

The importance of mobile apps in today’s banking industry cannot be measurable as they deliver incredible benefits to banks, finance companies, and FinTech organizations. Driven by the advancements in mobile technologies, mobile banking apps are addressing unique benefits for banks and end-users.

Here are a few major benefits for banks on investing in app development.

• Streamlined Operations

The role of baking solutions in this emerging digital age is versatile. Mobile applications empower banks and finance companies to optimize business efficiencies and restructure their traditional processes.

Driven by the increasing adoption of Artificial Intelligence (AI), banking apps are now assisting banks in automating their regular operations and improving the quality of work. Document processing, credit scoring, policy updating, loan underwriting, account creation, profile validation, and many more tasks can be automated using AI banking apps. Such automated processes through AI-powered mobile banking apps will improve productivity and reduce operational costs.

• Offer Great Flexibility To Transfer Money

Mobile banking solutions are the best alternatives to traditional tame-taking money deposit procedures. Banking apps for Android or iOS offer great flexibility to customers to send or receive money from domestic and international accounts or contacts over secured platforms in just minutes.

Hence, unlike traditional paper works, banks can validate the user’s authentication and process transactions faster. It will save time and processes multiple transactions at a time.

• Instant Customer Support Services

What if hundreds of customers stand in a queue to meet a banking representative to know their loan status or drop their banking-related service queries?

Just imagine how much it will take to sort out the customer issues manually.

AI-based virtual customer support bots are the best solutions to automate customer support services and increase brand credibility. AI-powered mobile banking apps with the interaction of interactive and collaborative chatbot features will assist banks to make their brand available at the fingertips of the customers.

• Personalized & Customized Service Offerings

Leveraging the potentialities of AI, machine learning, and deep learning technologies, mobile banking apps play a key role in processing customer data and deriving insights into their search patterns. These insights would help banking and finance companies to provide personalized banking services and generate value-driven business.

For instance, by tracking and monitoring customer banking transactions and repayment histories, banks can offer personalized loan offerings and build strong relationships with customers.

• Detect Fraud Activities

Investments in ML-powered fraud detection banking apps help banks to continuously monitor the banking network and every online transaction and seamlessly identify fraud transitions. Such intelligent banking apps can only process transactions upon successful verification of user authentication or else they decline the transactions.

Hence, with banking apps in place, security issues can be monitored and protection of the user’s confidential banking information is provided.

• Prevent Cybersecurity Risks

Phishing Attacks, ransomware, and spoofing are a few major cybersecurity threats that banks are facing today. By adopting intelligent AI-powered banking solutions, banks can prevent security risks, particularly cyberattacks, and their information systems from being hacked.

• Increased Customer Satisfaction and Retention

The impact of mobile banking services on increasing customer retention is very high. Interactive AI-powered banking apps assist banks in providing instant virtual responses to their customers. Such accurate and automated responses significantly enhance the customers’ satisfaction level. Moreover, speedy and convenient online banking services will improve the customer experience and augment the retention rate.

• Predict Market Dynamics

It is one of the best applications of AI and ML in banking and finance. Besides fraud detention and compliance management, AI/ML-powered banking and finance apps predict stock market opportunities and help users create strong investment portfolios. It significantly improves the app's potentiality and helps to strengthen the brand value.

These are a few advantages of mobile banking app development. Using mobile apps, banks, and financial organizations can streamline operations and make the entire banking system cyber-secure.

Now, let’s take a look at how end-users will benefit from downloading, installing, and using digital banking solutions.

Benefits Delivered To Customers Through A Mobile Banking App

• 24/7 Accessibility

The mobile banking apps offer 24/7 accessibility to the products and services of a specific bank where they hold their accounts. Users can unlock the application and check their balance or surf through any other banking services on-the-go from anywhere, at any time. It will save users time and improve their experiences by filling their banking needs faster.

• Quick Transactions

It is one of the top advantages of mobile banking apps. Banking apps allow users to send/receive money from other accounts seamlessly. Quick transactions with end-to-end encryption throughout the process, from app login and beneficiary selection to amount validation and processing transaction, in every step banking apps maintain high security and privacy.

• No Waiting Times

Yes, banking applications or Fintech apps remove the burden of standing in a long queue and waiting for hours. Banking app users can comfortably request banking services that they need right from their place or on the go without any hassle.

• Quick To View Transaction History

Mobile banking apps allow users to view the history of their transactions anytime, anywhere. This feature of banking apps helps users better manage their finances and also increases the app’s personalization.

• Push Notifications

Push notifications are one of the most essential features in mobile banking apps that send immediate alerts to the app users on recent activities in the application. Hence, users can better control their accounts and respond immediately upon receiving any security updates or notifications of illegal account accesses.

Are you looking to invest in banking application development?

Here are the best tips to build a flawless and highly secured banking application. Let’s get started!

Best Tips To Make Your Mobile Banking App Secure

Security is one of the high-priority features in mobile banking applications. Many people are worried about the privacy and security of their confidential financial information. Here are a few security tips that help a custom FinTech App Development Company build cost-effective and robust banking solutions.

1. Fingerprint/Facial/OTP Validation If The Best Way To Prevent Illegal Access

Mobile app developers must focus on integrating highly advanced security features for protecting user’s accounts from hackers. App access through Fingerprint or facial verification is one of the smart ways to block illegal accesses or illegal transactions.

Leveraging pattern recognition and ML techniques, mobile banking apps verify patterns of fingerprints and facial features and enable access to the users. Hence, the chances of illegal access to user accounts and confidential information are very less.

2. Unique Password Patterns Are Tough To Hack

Custom mobile banking apps with strong and unique password features will ensure high-level security for the customers’ data. Also, enable a password update feature for a specific period to allow users to change their passwords (if necessary) and improve the app’s security.

3. Integrate Advanced Threat Monitoring Features

Empower custom mobile banking apps by adding AI-enabled next-generation advanced security features like network monitoring and user behavior monitoring. These type of advanced AI features in banking apps plays an essential role in identifying fraudulent acts and sending immediate notifications to the users.

4. Empower Your Banking With Blockchain

Blockchain is one of the trendiest technology in mobile banking application development. The revolutionary and decentralized Blockchain technology makes Finance apps more robust and powerful. Cloud-based Blockchain technology encrypts every transaction and provides access to records only to authorized persons. It will speed up the transaction process and improve the security level.

5. Notifications On Money Transactions

It is another security level where users will get real-time notifications on every transaction. Banks or app admins will trigger an alert to the users upon money transactions or multiple PIN attempts. Mobile banking app development with this feature provides users control over their accounts and thus, optimizes security levels.

6. Focus On Compliance Safety Apps

Banking apps stores very confidential and sensitive information of customers. They should be developed with tools that automatically update the app’s privacy rules according to the existing compliance.

7. Avoid Unnecessary Third-Party Integrations

It is one of the best tips to keep your mobile banking app secure from hacking. Integration of dedicated third-party Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) allows customers to access third-party services like online payments. But, an Mobile app development company should focus on making this entire process fully encrypted and add verified & secured APIs to prevent cyber risks and data leaks.

8. Test Your App Thoroughly Before The Launch Into The Market

Module testing and quality assurance are the best approaches to making mobile banking apps more secure. A though testing of the app features plays an essential role in monitoring how much security it provides to the user's sensitive banking data.

However, introducing MVP (minimum viable product) with a set of basic features and functionalities before launching the full-fledged banking software is a good approach. This strategy will help developers to determine the app's performance, review the end-user feedback, and augment its features list as per the customers’ needs.

Herein we have discussed only a few significant tips that app developers must consider for creating a secure mobile banking app. Top banking app development companies or leading Fintech App Development Company will use AI, ML, and NLP-like advanced technologies and build the best banking app with smart features.

Final Words

Mobile applications have become essential assets for banks and customers to interact and get desired banking needs fulfilled in just a fraction of a minute. Be it funds transfer, online payments, loan repayments, or any other service requests, customers can immediately unlock the mobile banking apps and meet their needs.

On the other side, banks and financial institutions too can reap incredible benefits from the mobile banking app development in terms of streamlined operations, increased productivity, enhanced business efficiency, instant customer support services, and higher brand loyalty. Hence, the importance of mobile banking app development to remain competitive in the rapidly evolving digital landscape is high.

Finally, we would like to conclude that driven by the massive switch to banking apps for digital payments and seamless access to financial services, the scope for creative banking solutions is anticipated to flourish in the years ahead.