AppsFlyer report finds almost one-third of finance installs in the United States are digital banking apps that provide an alternative to traditional banks

AppsFlyer, the global leader in mobile attribution, released the 2020 edition of The State of Finance App Marketing: 2020 Global & US Trends. According to the report, globally, finance apps accounted for 5% of app downloads in 2019. Finance apps topped the charts as the second largest category for number of apps and sixth largest for total installs, providing fertile ground for innovation of traditional players and rise of mobile-first competitors.

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“The finance app industry is in the midst of staggering growth in global adoption, from 16% in 2015 to 64% in 2019, which is putting pressure on marketers to uplevel and digitize user acquisition and experience,” said Shani Rosenfelder, Head of Content & Mobile Insights, AppsFlyer. “Our latest analysis finds several key trends, including that digital banking alternatives are steadfast rivals to traditional legacy options, install and post-install fraud are rampant detractors of marketing ROI and user experience is paramount to immediate action.”

Notable US Insights

• Nearly 1 in 2 finance app installs is non-organic as marketers increasingly boost user acquisition budgets to stay competitive. This follows a 70% increase in the share of finance apps with a marketing budget, including digital banking apps seeing a 100% year-over-year (YoY) growth in user acquisition budgets followed by investment apps at 60% YoY.
• 28% of finance apps suffer from more than 30% install fraud rate. While digital banking apps have stronger protections than financial services and investment, all marketers need to be mindful that some installs may be fraudulent.
• iOS sees 4x greater month-long retention of non-organic investment app users than Android. Comparably, organic and non-organic Android users have a slightly higher retention rate in digital banking and financial services apps.
• Financial services apps deliver superior user experience, as measured by the near 50% of users who complete their registration process. Compared to the average rate of 37% across all finance apps, this is due to users downloading apps when they need them for immediate use.

“The financial services industry is in a critical stage of innovation, and it’s up to marketers to beat the array of competition,” said Doug McMillen, Vice President Enterprise Strategy, AppsFlyer. “There is more pressure than ever for this innovation to be mobile-first to meet the ubiquity of mobile payments and global consumer demands for on-the-go access. With this report, marketers have insight into how to direct their app marketing spend, prioritize user acquisition and measure success so they can stay competitive.”

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The Coronavirus Effect

The State of Finance App Marketing’s 2020 edition is based on data that preceded the global outbreak of COVID-19. As response to the pandemic requires many people across the globe to stay at home, app usage in many verticals is currently on the rise. In finance, AppsFlyer anticipates several scenarios that could play out:

• Volatile markets lead to increased usage of investment apps among investors.
• More payments will be made virtually as physical contact is limited. However, reduced economic activity can also lead to a drop in use.
• Quick and short-term loans will be necessary during the economic crisis. This will lead many people and small businesses to avoid bureaucracy and use lending apps. In some countries, such as in India and Indonesia, loan use is dropping because people are not working and cannot commit to repayment terms, while loan companies are extremely hesitant to provide loans fearing many will become defaulters.
• Bank account owners will monitor their finances digitally. As physical locations remain closed customers will turn to online banking, and mainly use their phones.

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