It seems like everyone wants to build the next Revolut or Wise. Inspired by the explosive growth of digital banking, a growing number of companies—from ambitious fintech startups to traditional businesses—are looking to launch their own mobile banking or payment apps.
But while the market is ripe with opportunity, many new players underestimate the true price of entry.
Building a banking app from the ground up costs €120,000–€300,000 up front, with ongoing maintenance, security and compliance adding a further 15–25 per cent of that amount every year — costs Baltic Amadeus and ConnectPay know well from working with companies entering this space.
If you are planning to enter the mobile banking space, here is a breakdown of what really drives these costs—and the strategies successful players use to launch smarter.
A Financial App is Not an E-Commerce App
One of the most common pitfalls for new market entrants is treating a mobile banking app like a standard retail or e-commerce application.
In an e-commerce app, the user experience is about discovery—browsing, comparing, and exploring. In a financial app, the user logs in with a singular, immediate goal: check a balance, transfer money, or confirm a transaction. Speed, security, and absolute frictionless execution are not just nice-to-haves; they are the entire product.
“The user only sees the ‘Transfer’ button and expects the process to take a few seconds. They don’t see the licensing, SEPA routing, fraud checks, and dozens of regulatory rules working behind the scenes. If that button is slow or clunky, the customer won’t care about your infrastructure—they will simply leave for a competitor,” states Linardas Saldukas, Head of Strategy Consulting Unit at Baltic Amadeus.
The Costs of Compliance and Security
What makes fintech development so uniquely expensive? The answer is regulation. Frameworks like PSD2, GDPR, AML/KYC and DORA require a level of security architecture that simply doesn’t exist in other digital fields.
“Compliance isn’t an add-on feature you can bolt on later — it’s a mandatory part of the infrastructure. Security and compliance requirements typically increase a fintech app’s development budget by 20–40%, so players who plan for this in advance avoid unpleasant surprises later,” notes Simas Simanauskas, Chief Commercial Officer at ConnectPay.
Launch Day is the Starting Line
Many businesses believe that the €120,000–€300,000 initial development cost is the finish line. In reality, a fintech app is a living, breathing product that requires constant investment.
Operating systems update, regulatory requirements shift, and cyber threats rapidly evolve. Just to keep the app running securely and meeting required industry standards, you invest an additional 15–25% of the initial build amount every year.
Take a €150,000 build as an example. Yearly upkeep will call for another €22,500–€37,500 to keep it secure and compliant. That’s a predictable cost, and budgeting for it from day one means it never comes as a shock later.
„These amounts strike many as unexpectedly large, because the market is still dominated by the belief that digital banking is simply an app with a good user experience. In reality, just to keep the app running securely and meeting the required standards, an additional 15–25 percent of the initial amount must be invested every year. And that’s every year, for as long as the product stays on the market,” says Linardas Saldukas, Head of the Strategy Consulting Unit at Baltic Amadeus.
Other predictable costs to factor in:
- PCI DSS Certification: €15,000 – €50,000 annually
- Transaction Costs: Interbank network fees, infrastructure maintenance, and KYC checks.
As Simas points out, “The payments business is fundamentally a volume business. Pricing is not arbitrary—it reflects how efficiently an institution manages volume, risk, and infrastructure.”
Opportunities still exist
The obstacles are real, but the door to mobile banking app development is still wide open. The newcomers pulling ahead tend to share three habits:
- Target a narrow niche where they can excel.
- Leverage proven infrastructure rather than reinventing it.
- Release updates monthly, matching the cadence set by global fintech leaders.
Cost management itself can become a real advantage here. Providers that invest in efficient processes and automation can often offer better terms than larger, slower-moving competitors — so price, over time, can shift from being an obstacle to becoming a genuine competitive edge.
“The question is no longer ‘whether it’s possible to enter the market,’ but rather ‘with what infrastructure and strategy to do so.’ Players who correctly understand where to compete and where to rely on partners still have a real opportunity to grow – even in a market where the bar keeps rising,” summarizes Simanauskas.
How ConnectPay and Baltic Amadeus collaborate
ConnectPay partners with Baltic Amadeus to accelerate exactly that kind of go-to-market. Baltic Amadeus integrates its FinCell mobile banking app’s front end and software-architecture know-how into ConnectPay’s licensed BaaS platform, which already includes SEPA Instant, SWIFT, multi-currency accounts and robust AML/KYC.
The collaboration allows companies to launch secure, compliant mobile banking in as little as three months – turning what used to be a million-euro, multi-year effort into a predictable, modular rollout.
