Nigerian banks with mobile apps

xolubi · July 15, 2015, 11:05am

Just saw this article on Techcabal and I am appalled at the number of banks whose apps are pretty much websites packaged within a mobile app, and obviously so too. I mean, GTB and Diamond’s apps were built with HTML/CSS/JS but the developers went all out to still make the UI as mobile friendly as they could. Fidelity, Skye, and Heritage bank just couldn’t be bothered.

Keystone, Mainstreet, and Wema definitely talked to the same developer - probably Interswitch, as their UI is basically the same as Quickteller’s. The Verve mPIN badge is a not-so-subtle giveaway too.

Not even sure what generation Enterprise Bank’s app is from.

Can anyone using the apps in the article share their experience with them? I’m familiar with Diamond’s and GTB’s. Diamond’s app is a breeze, although following the update from about two months back which ditched native code for HTML, responsiveness was slightly hampered. Still works, and I like that I don’t have to use my token. Great for emergency transactions.

GTB’s app was updated about the same time Diamond’s was too, but compared to Diamond, theirs went to shit IMO. Might be due to an overloaded API or something, but the app became so slow, and oftentimes returns “undefined” as menu options. Coincidentally, the developer is the same as Diamond’s - Vanso, iirc.

Dapo · July 15, 2015, 11:37am

I think Vanso is to the rescue…looking like they are out to deliver the banks from the hands of eTz and ISW

akamaozu · July 16, 2015, 1:23pm

Out of curiosity, how were you able to identify apps built with HTML/CSS/JS?

xolubi · July 16, 2015, 2:14pm

A combination of shoddy and ‘obvious’ design, familiarity with some of the UI “frameworks” used, and apk decompilation. For instance, you can readily tell that the FirstMonie app was done using some old version of jQuery Mobile.

akamaozu · July 16, 2015, 2:19pm

It’s easy to tell the source components of web apps with view source / inspect element and some of the request headers. None of those things are available for native apps, so I curious how you got the details.

apk decompilation sounds totally interesting. Any pointers on trying this?

xolubi · July 16, 2015, 2:25pm

http://ibotpeaches.github.io/Apktool/

enyinna · July 16, 2015, 10:53pm

To the author of the Banks With Mobile Apps Post, Please update the post to reflect the actual Union Bank of Nigeria’s Mobile app.

You can find it here: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.unionmobileng.ui&hl=en

Not this ==> https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.unionbank.ecommerce.mobile.android

sanjubhambhani · July 16, 2015, 10:58pm

Not a fan of Hybrid-apps either, native all the way.

akamaozu · July 17, 2015, 5:58am

Why do you say that?

xolubi · July 17, 2015, 10:13am

@akamaozu Because

I am hard pressed to find an app I rely on often that’s hybrid - besides my bank’s app which is because I literally have no choice.
Experience so far has been subpar. I know there have been improvements in toolkits of late but hey, even Facebook had to ditch it for native back in 2012 and haven’t reneged on that decision.

This is still something I argue against at work. Thankfully, our mobile developers write native code and are great at adhering to UI guidelines, but the conversation still come up every now and then about our frontend guys expanding their skills to building hybrid apps with a faster turnaround time. My opinion is what you gain in development time, you eventually lose in overall user experience and customer satisfaction in the long run if you bother to measure that metric. Of course these banks don’t.