The world is changing dynamically. In the famous Apple ad, Steve Jobs said that he creates products for people who question the status quo. Now, during the rapid development of the global digital economy and the disappearance of national borders, we need a new Steve Jobs; our new visionary must challenge the new status quo of the
financial industry.
Clients want to be free and unlimited. They want to travel the world and be able to use cheap financial solutions everywhere. Maybe you want to become our new Steve Jobs?
The advancement of newer and newer digital channels and applications has already changed the way customers use financial services and products. Fewer people visit bank branches and more want to access their services overseas.
The word “offshore” is becoming truly popular: offshore banking, offshore companies, and offshore hosting. However, the point is not to transfer services to another country. It’s about blurring the borders and becoming global.
Banks and other financial institutions are trying to adapt to customer expectations and serve them through multiple communication channels and use application programming interfaces (APIs). However, they do it too slowly and sluggishly. More firm, bold and innovative solutions are needed.
Recipe for success: financial API and cheap node.js hosting
Application programming interface (API) is a set of functions and procedures that allow particular systems or applications to access data, thus increasing the functionality of the user of the bank’s website or application. APIs connect and grant the exchange of information between different, unrelated systems.
Companies use various APIs in the financial world. We can distinguish, for example, the API used by exchanges to collect data in one place, helping users in investment decisions. This could be information related to stocks and cryptocurrency markets. Another type is financial news API, a tool enabling convenient access to the latest information from the financial industry.
There are many advantages to using diverse APIs. Thanks to better communication, brands have access to detailed information about the customer, a precious resource. The use of modern technology is a crucial element in creating an innovative system that will break the rigid rules of the financial industry.
The final piece of the puzzle is efficient but cheap node hosting. Node.js is an environment that allows running programs written in JavaScript outside the web browser, at the server level. If you want your API to work worldwide, you ought to put it on a capable offshore web hosting that can handle that environment.
The development of information technology in the financial sector gives access to large-scale and diverse data sets that companies can use to personalize offers or services.
Financial API types
The basic types of APIs used in the financial industry include internal, partner, and open APIs. Internal ones are used inside the financial organization to facilitate information exchange and improve the company’s efficiency; they can be hosted on internal servers.
The other two types, however, require offshore web hosting as they need to be flexible in terms of laws and regulations. The financial industry is heavily bureaucratic anyway, so we must take care of the minimum restrictions.
Partner APIs create a data connection between two institutions. This enables the cooperation of two entities, which is very important in the financial industry. Open APIs make financial data available to various third-party service providers. This makes it possible to securely share information such as account and billing numbers, balances, and customer transaction history.
The financial system without borders
Financial, IT, and legal topics are crucial in the development of fintech solutions, but they cannot overshadow the critical area: the client, his desires, and needs. So what if we develop a reliable API following international regulations and find an efficient, cheap node.js hosting solution if customers will not be interested because it does not solve their real problems? At each stage, we must think about our clients.
One of the niches you can use API on the offshore host is open banking. You can create systems thanks to which the consumer will monitor different bank accounts more efficiently without switching between applications. Increase its security so that it can react quickly to possible fraud. Let him check which card he should pay in a given country so that he would save on spreads.
The integration of various accounts in one system will help the client to manage his finances. Thanks to a $10 or $20 subscription fee, he could save hundreds of dollars in spreads and bank fees. If your offer gives the client such benefits, this business will bring you satisfactory profits through economies of scale.
Worldwide investments
Spending money abroad is not the only area where someone has to challenge the status quo. Another area is automated saving and investing. Here, too, customers do not want to be loyal to one institution or state, but to function globally. Remember, that this is a serious business, a profitable opportunity, and some investments are obligatory. Cheap node hosting or offshore VPS wouldn’t be enough – you need to invest in a dedicated offshore host.
The client wants to own shares of a company listed on the NYSE and LSE, contracts for oil and grain, and real estate in Europe and the United States. Help him by bringing all fees and regulations to one web application.
Thanks to efficient communication between systems, a user from Sweden can pay for Australian apartment rentals in five seconds without worrying about high spreads and huge fees charged by intermediaries. Now you see why a dedicated server is required: you have to take the highest care of security.
If you create a system based on which customers could perform international operations quickly, you will become the new Steve Jobs of finance. Account and financial platforms consolidation, better spending analysis, and proactive financial management recommendations – this is what the world needs right now.
Open access to information
Create systems that will display additional information about changes in the stock market, and increase or decrease in the value of cryptocurrencies. Investors and entrepreneurs treasure access to up-to-date data because it allows them to make the right business decisions faster.
The application you create does not have to have many advanced functions. Maybe it’s worth starting with something simpler but reliable. The cost of the developer and offshore VPS will not be prohibitive and will allow you to enter the world of fintech and test your ideas by developing them in a cascade model.
The recipe for success is, therefore, to integrate various sources of data and news from the financial industry with a mobile application or website and provide end users with up-to-date information and advice. Create a system that allows the user to control the investment risk.
Conclusion
A Mastercard report “The future is here” from the end of 2021 shows that over 80% of consumers in the United States (mainly millennials and Gen Z) link their bank accounts to various financial applications. Questioning the financial status quo is the right path for an innovative and ambitious entrepreneur.
We all know that someday someone will do it and create an application that changes today’s standards. The first was Paypal, which allowed international payments to be made, yet fees and spreads are still significant.
The second-generation fintech (Revolut, Wise, or N26) made subsequent attempts, however, they also did not finish the case, leaving behind various constraints, spreads, and fees.
A real revolution requires a brave warrior who will go not a step further, but to the very end and put the user completely above the profits, as Google and Facebook once did. The profits will come anyway. Will you be that rebel?