A simple mobile application that tracks expenses or helps you save money will no longer surprise anyone.
Diem
British startup Diem is fighting over-the-topconsumption, combining the functions of a bank, a thrift store and a pawnshop. The service allows you to exchange unnecessary things for money transfers: the user uploads information about the item he wants to get rid of, and the platform evaluates and buys the item. The seller automatically receives credits to the account, and then sends the used goods to the company's headquarters. Diem uses machine learning to analyze popular marketplaces like eBay, and then chooses where and at what price to sell the product.
The startup calls itself a bank of things and promises"Make capitalism friends with sustainable development." Diem also offers traditional banking services such as debit accounts and cross-border transfers. But concern for the environment and conscious consumption sets the platform apart from competitors and attracts a young audience - millennials and zoomers. Many of them sell items online but don't want to personally handle the sales and delivery. The bank, which takes on this mission, simplifies the task - the user only needs to photograph the thing and attach a description, and the company already takes care of the rest.
Technologies.Like many other neobanks, Diem does notbanking license - the company uses the Railsbank Banking-as-a-Service platform to provide fintech services. The company processes all requests from users using algorithms based on machine learning, and also uses AI to identify suspicious activity. In the future, Diem plans to introduce a new user identification model - it is likely that they will rely on blockchain.
CoinKeeper
“There is a stereotype that expense accounting servicesused by those who lack money,” notes CoinKeeper CEO Ilya Chernetsky. However, the habit of analyzing spending is useful to everyone - it doesn’t matter whether you get 20,000 or 200,000 rubles. In 2011, when the current i-Free Ventures team launched CoinKeeper, there were not many financial accounting services: some used Excel spreadsheets or cumbersome desktop programs, and some even preferred analog methods and wrote down expenses in a notepad. The culture of financial accounting in Russia had not yet been formed, and only a few were involved in calculations.
The CoinKeeper team decided to create a simplea mobile version with gamification elements - to track expenses, you had to drag coins in the expense category. The mechanics vaguely resembled Angry Birds, the popular mobile game of the 2010s.
Thanks to a simple and intuitive interface for peoplethe habit developed faster: after 10 years, more than 600 thousand people were using the service. Over time, the company has automated some of the processes - if you get a CoinKeeper bank card, all expenses from it will be automatically categorized. This solves the main problem of financial accounting services: users do not want to waste time on making expenses, and automation saves them from unnecessary routine.
Technologies:CoinKeeper became one of the first Russian-speakingapplications for financial accounting in the market. The company developed a version for iOS and Android, and over time launched a web version and a special modification of the service for Huawei and Honor smartphones.
Zeta
Maintaining a family budget in the 2020s is easier thanever before: just get a joint bank card or open a savings account. But in practice, everything is not so simple - not all banks provide a joint account service, and most create products for married couples. People who are not married usually use one card between them, but it belongs to only one partner.
Zeta service found a solution to the problem:the company has created an app that helps couples manage a joint budget, split bills, and save money for big expenses. To do this, you do not need to open a separate card at the bank: Zeta creates a virtual account to which you can transfer amounts from any account.
The startup deals not only with transactions, but alsodevelopment of financial literacy: the platform allows couples to monitor spending and save for major goals. Zeta also provides advice for couples at different stages of their relationship and shows specific examples of how to effectively manage a joint budget. “Incredibly, most couples break up due to financial conflicts. We are confident that technology can solve this problem,” say the service developers.
Technologies.Zeta acts as a digital fintech add-on towhich you can connect cards issued by different banks. To protect data, two-factor authentication and data encryption are used. The Zeta app is based on multiplayer mechanics: two users receive equal access and equal rights, which allows both to track any changes and conduct transactions in real time.
"for lunch"
Another project i-Free Ventures helpsfor Russian companies to organize meals for employees and delivery of meals to offices. Lunch has developed a convenient platform that allows employers to manage compensation for food, place orders for meals, and restaurants to increase the number of visitors.
Employees don't need to get coupons or stand inqueues in one corporate canteen - they can dine wherever it is convenient using a card with an NFC chip, and receive pleasant bonuses from restaurants. If necessary, you can organize a snack bar in the office or delivery of meals to the workplace. All transactions are recorded in a single database, and the company receives a detailed report and analytics.
Niche fintech projects that solve pinpointfinancial tasks - one of the global trends. Services are already appearing on the market that organize payments to streamers, transfer salaries to taxi drivers and couriers, connect online tips and save entrepreneurs from small routine tasks. "NaLunch" also offers a niche product, but for large companies it can save a lot of money, and most importantly, time.
Technologies."naLanch" is a service that can beintegrated with other elements of the company's infrastructure, such as 1C, SAP, as well as with HRIS systems and an access control and management system based on NFC cards (for example, MiFare).
Goalsetter
Founder of the Goalsetter app Tanya WangCourt learned from personal experience what financial well-being and its absence are. In the early 2000s, when the dot-com bubble burst, she lost $1 million. Van Court's service is designed for teenagers who are just becoming familiar with financial concepts and developing their money literacy. Parents transfer a certain amount to a virtual account, which the child learns to manage. They can also financially reward children for passing quizzes and answering questions correctly.
Another function of Goalsetter is the developmentgoal setting. Parents open a special account for the child’s goals, and the child learns to save money and save for a dream. This approach allows families to save up to $120 per month. But Goalsetter doesn't stop there. The app teaches young users to understand more serious financial instruments, such as deposits and mutual funds.
“It is not enough to teach children how to spend, you need to show them how to accumulate capital,” the creators of the project believe.
Technologies:Goalsetter is designed according to the principle of the classicservice for budgeting with EdTech product functions. The company provides users with Cashola debit cards - issued by a MetaBank partner, as well as GoalCard gift cards that help save money for specific purposes. From a technological point of view, the innovation of the service lies not so much in its fintech component as in EdTech mechanics, which help children from 8 to 18 years old to develop financial literacy.
Zelf
Modern banking has evolved and todaythe map can be opened remotely via the app. But why can't you open accounts directly in instant messengers in a matter of seconds? This idea came to the creators of the Zelf fintech service, designed for generation Z. The company did not develop a mobile application - all services can be obtained in WhatsApp, Viber or Telegram. In just 30 seconds, the user draws up a virtual card that can be linked to Apple Pay and Google Pay. Bloggers and small businesses can also bill clients and generate QR codes for payment.
The creators of Zelf chose instant messengers asThe main promotion platform is no coincidence: smartphone users spend 84% of their screen time on Viber, Telegram and other messaging services. Therefore, the team decided to adapt to the potential audience and simplify access to financial services as much as possible. Large banks have not yet decided on such a simplification for security reasons. But Zelf believes that the audience is already ready for experiments: if people discuss their personal lives in messengers, then they are also ready to conduct transactions in this way.
Another plus is a reduction in productionplastic, as Zelf only issues physical cards upon request. And less CO2 is generated, since the company does not have a separate application and it uses a ready-made infrastructure.
Technologies.Using the API of popular messengers, developers Zelf has created several bots that performbanking application functions. The user can give voice and text commands, as well as use widgets. Zelf is based on the Banking-as-a-Service platform Treezor, which serves many European neobanks.
"Money up front"
Most corporations pay employeestransferred in parts twice a month. This option is suitable for specialists, but for temporary workers, for example, sellers, waiters or couriers, this is not the best option. Due to high rotation, staff often changes, and newcomers have to wait a long time for their first payments. However, permanent employees also often do not have enough salary - sometimes unplanned expenses arise, and they have to borrow money from friends, or in the worst case, from microfinance organizations.
In the USA, Europe and Asia with the emergence of the gig economya category of fintech services has appeared that operate on a pay on demand model. They transfer the amounts to workers upon request, regardless of the payday. Dengi Vperyod is the first example of such a service in Russia. According to the company's estimates, early payments reduce staff rotation by 41% and increase loyalty and motivation. At the same time, the employer does not lose anything: all sick leave, time off and fines are taken into account when calculating payments, and the process is arranged as transparently as possible. The service was launched at the end of 2019, and it came in especially handy in 2020, when many people were cut or lost income. Similar fintech projects have appeared in other countries - for example, the Indonesian service GajiGesa transfers salaries to employees who do not have a bank account.
Technologies."Money Forward" provides partners with a plugin,which connects to an accounting system, for example, 1C, SAP or Oracle, although operations can also be carried out through a standard personal account. The employer transfers the money to a nominal account, and the platform provides it to employees upon request. Formally, the company works as a personal data operator, and carries out all operations only after concluding a partnership agreement.
Millions
At first glance, the startup concept lookssuspicious: the company gives out money to random users, arranging a kind of lottery on Twitter. However, Millions is not misleading people: they actually pay rewards in exchange for attention. In this way, the brand gathers an audience. Instead of buying advertising on Instagram and Facebook platforms, the startup is promoting itself using this unconventional method. The company does not hide that it is preparing to launch a new product - a MyCard bank card, which will reward customers for transactions. In the meantime, the creators of the service give people two things that are especially needed in 2021, namely money and hope.
“We lift the spirits, we entertain, people look forward to the jokes. This is very inspiring,” the authors of the project note.
Unlike other dubious pranks insocial media, Millions does not guarantee payments or charge members. The only requirement is to subscribe to the brand on social media. That is, instead of spending money on advertising and promotion, the company transfers money to subscribers. Investors have already appreciated this approach - recently, Millions raised $ 3 million in a seed round.
Technologies.Project Millions is a cross between lotteries andcharity event. In terms of technology, the project is quite simple, so that the company's innovative approach is expressed not in software, but in marketing strategy.
The functionality of fintech assistants is expanding, makingcash transactions are less soulless and filling the notional salary with dreams and goals. Through mobile apps, startups are building a new behavioral culture among their users, starting from childhood.
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