Custom development for fintech: why you should outsource a project
Outsourcing development for banks is a way to accelerate digital transformation without additional staff costs. Fintech companies and banks transfer IT projects to external teams in order to launch services faster, update payment platforms and adapt to the market. This approach allows you to shorten the release time, increase flexibility and get a guaranteed result.
What is the main problem of the market?
Today, the internal IT teams of banks and financial organizations often work to the limit of their capabilities: tasks multiply, regulations become more complicated, and resources for new initiatives are scarce. Launching even a small project to implement digital solutions for financial institutions takes time and requires specialists who are difficult to quickly find and adapt. Therefore, more and more banks are choosing to cooperate with technology partners and outsource development projects to accelerate the transition from an idea to a finished product.
External teams bring ready-made IT solutions for banks or, for example, experience in payment automation and modernization of financial technologies, as well as an understanding of the specifics of digital systems for fintech. Approaches to cooperation may vary, but the goal is always the same — to use technology for banks to bring fintech services to market faster and strengthen their positions in the digital environment.
We can confidently say that the fintech market is growing and developing very rapidly. What was at the pilot stage yesterday is actively changing the fintech landscape today. Banks are introducing the digital ruble, testing new formats of customer services, and rebuilding their ABS and payment platforms — all in an environment where project deadlines are reduced to a minimum.
Contractor instead of department: why banks transfer development to external teams
Today, banks cannot afford long-term planning: while one team approves the architecture, a competitor is already launching a new digital solution and testing the hypothesis on real users. So, in the fall, Sber introduced the contactless payment service “Vzhuh”, and just a few weeks later, T-Bank launched a similar tool in T-Pay. According to open data, T-Bank’s customers completed more than 2 million transactions in the first five days, and Sberbank collected over 5 million payments in a week. This example clearly shows that in the world of financial technology, the winner is the one who is the first to offer digital solutions to customers.
The speed of product launch is often more important than its functionality. The fintech environment is dynamic: users choose what already works. The classic model — hire developers, assemble an internal team, and build processes — no longer keeps up with the pace of change.
This is where outsourcing teams come to the rescue, allowing banks to quickly implement payment automation technologies and digital transaction systems without overloading internal resources. Such partners undertake the recruitment of specialists, process management and quality control, providing full-cycle financial IT services.
What are the main advantages when ordering an IT outsourcing service?
The speed of the start. The main value of cooperation with external teams is not only budget savings, but also high speed of project implementation, which is becoming critical in the context of modernization of financial technologies and growing competition in the fintech market.
The external team does not spend weeks hiring and adapting, it is ready to work from the first day. Experienced contractors are already familiar with typical banking landscapes and architectures. This reduces the diving time from weeks to days.
Flexibility. We need to strengthen the team at the peak of the project — we added people. The load has decreased — it has been reduced.
Expertise. Contractors already have experience with similar tasks: digital ruble, migration to a new ABS, integration with payment gateways, connection of QR codes. Outsourcing teams have already been assembled from specialized specialists. The main thing is to look at the outsourcing cases of software development in the banking sector, as there are many pitfalls and rules.
Responsibility. Unlike temporary reinforcement of a team, professional IT outsourcing implies the contractor’s full responsibility for deadlines and results. The external team does not just perform tasks, but takes over process management and quality control of the implemented solutions. For the bank, this means the opportunity to focus on strategic initiatives and customer service by transferring the technical part to a reliable partner.
In Right line, banks and financial organizations often contact us with such a request. One example is a project to outsource software development and test automation in a large bank: the introduction of an external team made it possible to speed up releases, optimize IT processes and reduce the burden on the internal department.
How to create tasks for an external IT team
Even with a strong team and high-quality architecture, it’s easy to slow down a project with endless approvals and inconsistencies. To avoid this, it is important to establish clear communication with the contractor and follow several key principles of interaction.
First the goal, then the code
A common mistake in banking projects is to start with a technical assignment without defining the business result. Successful software development outsourcing is based on a clear answer to the question: why are we creating this product?
If the goal is formulated — for example, to speed up digital onboarding, shorten the customer’s path to payment, or reduce the burden on support — the development team gets a clear guideline. This saves weeks, reduces the number of edits, and helps to implement digital solutions for financial organizations faster.
Trust the contractor’s expertise
When choosing a technology partner, it is important to transfer to them not only tasks, but also part of the responsibility. The bank formulates a business goal, and the IT outsourcing team determines exactly how to achieve it using modern technologies for banks.
When the customer begins to control the technical details (“how to write code”), the project loses momentum. But if the contractor is given space for decisions, and the business remains a strategic navigator, there is a sense of common purpose and synchronicity.
Demo and feedback
Regular interim screenings — every 2-3 weeks — allow the bank to see real progress, adjust requirements, and identify errors on time. This approach is the basis of flexible methodologies in financial IT services.
Short iterations, transparent communication, and two-step verification of technical specifications reduce the risk of conflicts and overwork. This is especially important when implementing systems for digital transactions and upgrading financial technologies, where the cost of error is high.
What happens
IT outsourcing in fintech is not just a way to make up for the lack of resources, but a full-fledged digital acceleration tool. When internal teams don’t have enough time to hire and train, external specialists help banks quickly implement digital solutions for financial organizations and move from an idea to a working service in a matter of weeks.
The main condition for success is clear goals, trust in the expertise of a technology partner, and regular feedback. Collaborative demos, short iterations, and transparent processes transform software development outsourcing into a managed system where the outcome is predictable and measurable.
Following these principles, banks accelerate modernization, enter production in a timely manner and offer products to the market that really solve customers’ problems. As a result, technology is becoming a competitive advantage for banks rather than a cost, and financial IT services are the driving force behind digital transformation.
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