Challenger bank in Africa for the next generation of creatives.

Building a bank is difficult—so difficult, in fact, that most experts would advise against starting one at all. However, the team at Bettr was determined to launch a new banking solution that would provide young people with access to the financial products they deserve. The challenges facing new banks are numerous: from licensing and regulatory approval to securing sufficient funding, managing risk and compliance, and understanding the various facets that make up comprehensive banking services. Beyond these operational hurdles, Bettr's largest challenge was presenting a fully-formed product to decision makers that would meet and exceed their expectations.

The goal was ambitious: to deliver a product that appeared simplified on the surface (despite banks being incredibly complex systems), while also providing an exceptionally secure, scalable platform with world-class UX and UI. The fully developed bank needed to exceed the benchmark set by established competitors in the market.

Adding to the complexity, Bettr had previously worked with multiple designers, resulting in significant inconsistencies across their design work. With no design system in place to reference when creating new flows, there were no foundations to support the hyper-growth environment necessary for scaling. The lack of cohesive design standards threatened to undermine the user experience before the platform even launched.

Blott provided comprehensive support across Bettr's entire digital ecosystem. We partnered with Bettr to develop and build their UI and UX, create Android and iOS applications, provide architectural guidance for the platform, and build a custom CRM system. The collaboration between Blott Studio and Bettr was dynamic, with both teams working in tandem toward common goals.

We started by creating a stunning website in Webflow, enhanced with custom JavaScript and GSAP to push creative boundaries. The result was an engaging digital presence that captured the brand's energy and drove significant pre-registration numbers.

For the product design, we recognized the need to start fresh. Working simultaneously, our product design team developed a comprehensive design system while creating new features with an updated visual style. We coordinated work across brand design, illustration, motion design, Webflow development, and product design to create a cohesive brand experience that aligned perfectly with Bettr's detailed target audience and tone of voice.

The mobile application development began with core banking features: user onboarding, account and card issuance, and simple peer-to-peer transactions. We then expanded to include notifications and value-added services such as card security controls, analytics, and a round-ups savings feature. We built the apps in React Native, integrating third-party services including Firebase, Auth0, Google Places, Intercom, Onfido, and Stitch, with backend communication handled by GraphQL and state management through Redux.

When Bettr realized that off-the-shelf CRM solutions were too costly and inflexible for their needs, Blott built a custom CRM system from scratch, providing the flexibility required to manage customer relationships effectively while maintaining scalability for future growth.

The Bettr platform launched successfully after 12 months of intensive development, with the website alone driving 65,000 pre-registrations for the mobile apps. The site's innovative design earned recognition, being featured on both Lapa Ninja and Landing Folio as a product of the day. Thousands of users were successfully onboarded within the first weeks of launch, demonstrating the platform's readiness and appeal to its target audience.

Blott Studio continues to deliver ongoing value through comprehensive support services, including architecture management, infrastructure monitoring and improvement, third-party integration implementation, new feature development, production deployment, and 24/7 maintenance support. The collaboration involved 11 team members from Blott Studio—including React Native Developers, Python Developers, Product Designers, and Product Managers—making Bettr one of the largest mobile projects at Blott Studio to date. With a strong foundation and a full complement of fintech expertise backing them, Bettr continues to grow and serve young people seeking financial independence with #zerocompromise.