The use of mobile and smartphone capabilities is integrated into many different market sectors for a variety of reasons. Some of the more obvious include fast access, connectivity, and portability. People can connect with each other in different countries and in different time zones, whenever they please. While mobile helps people keep tabs on their social circle, it can also help people keep tabs on personal things, such as their finances. Mobile is incorporating the need for money management and handling of investment decisions in a more accessible and portable way. Now, it only takes a few clicks to locate and handle valuable investment information and transactions.
Transitioning From Traditional Financial Planning to Mobile Financial Planning
Smartphones have placed extremely powerful tools in our hands for quite some time and have now transformed the way we manage our finances, all the way from mobile banking, bill payment, credit score checking to automated subscription payments. This has allowed us to take more time to focus on the other priorities in our lives. With this new adoption, automated investment and wealth management has become one of the biggest breakthroughs in recent years. Many of the world’s largest brokers have now released apps utilizing “robo-advisors”, which are apps that make it easy for the novice investor to pave their way in the investment market. It is also becoming common for traditional financial planners to implement robo-advisors’ platforms for their clients. By doing so, planners are relieved of the task of choosing investment assets, so that they can focus more on addressing individual personal finance issues.
A majority of the population has different expectations on product offerings being that they live in a predominantly digital world. Financial advisors and wealth managers need to adapt to this in order to stay relevant. Investing apps help users to track information in real-time as well as help to easily manage existing investments and choose new ones wisely. New independents such as Betterment have already accumulated over than $10 billion in assets under management. Using wireless technology to access trading platforms helps to execute trades instantly, without the need to be at a desk or computer. It also opens the door for investing into the digital economy of cryptocurrency. Cryptocurrency is quickly becoming one of the hottest topics in the financial and economic world today, with a majority of businesses implementing it one way or another.
Advantages of Investing Apps
What makes these apps and platforms so beneficial? The ones that are most successful are addressing the users “pain point” characteristics, such as hard to use, expensive, confusing, and information overload. These platforms utilize in-app messages and updates to educate users on the importance of staying in the investment space despite volatile fluctuations in the market. Robo-algorithms are tailored to suit the users tolerance towards risk, and are used as a foundation to create a diversified portfolio. The user experience is simple and easy to use, at a level that fosters trust, confidence, and makes the user feel in a position to make an informed decision. Users are able to trade on the go without being locked to a machine or location, or working around the time of a tradition traders’ hours.
Many apps provide the ability for users to utilize a single portfolio view, where the latest trends show users an overall perspective of their investment portfolio without having to use multiple applications. This aspect of organization is where intelligent integrated apps are excelling. News is also personalized based on the user’s profile and preferences to provide specifically targeted information for an enhanced experience. Access is instant for depositing and withdrawing, allowing users to carry out these actions 24/7 and in a speedy and efficient manner. Millenials are also more likely to invest at earlier stages when done on a smartphone. This tackles a very relevant problem of the younger generations failing to invest their money, hurting their ability to grow it over time.
Mobile has transformed the way people communicate with each other, access the internet, and get from one place to another. Each year there are significant advances in the software capabilities that the economic and financial fields have the ability to capitalize on. Technology has always been a strong proponent in finance, and now, with the move towards a digital economy, developers are driving forward even more. By integrating mobile and investing, there is a higher likelihood that a higher percent of the population will participate, due to higher engagement and increased accessibility. Even though the technology is still developing, it is only just getting started. New entrants to the financial space now are provided with many possible paths for investment management. Power is now being put back into the hands of the consumer, with increased accessibility and control over their assets.
