# Fintech case study: how we worked on MyScore AS | MassMedia Group Cases

This is the first article in the MassMedia Group Cases series where we’re going to tell you about our successful cases in custom software development, because we have a lot to talk about. By this time we have more than 400 projects, and we’re eager to share how exciting it was to work on each and every one of them.

In this article, you’ll find out more about our recent fintech project MyScore AS, as well as what the company has achieved with this technical product, and what part we took in this success.

So, how did it all begin? It was only us, the client, and the vague task formed from an idea at the start. And then, one day, we discovered ourselves working on a fintech project with the goal to create one user-friendly product that could help people gather relevant information about Norwegian companies and the most important - their financial stability. The project was financial industry-oriented, and the main essence of it was a convenient design, suitable for various types of users. Actually, the design was a crucial and one of the most complicated parts of the project since arranging massive blocks of information in a simple and good-looking way isn't an easy task, after all.

And with this thought in mind, we began a complex process of custom fintech solution development.

 

Fintech case study: What was MyScore AS all about

So, we gathered experts who were responsible for MyScore AS delivery. We all sat down in our meeting room to prepare a helpful fintech case study with tiny development flow guidance. Me, the author of this article, had an interesting conversation with:

  Anna  - Project Manager/Business Analyst,

  Yana  - Lead Business Analyst,

  Roman  - Lead Developer,

  Olena  - Business Development Manager.

“So, the first question is, how do we actually get this project?”

  Olena : One of our clients connected us with MyScore AS founders. Since we have been working together for a while on another Fintech project - Defero, he already knew our level of expertise and could recommend us to his friends. Both Defero and MyScore AS are startups in the financial sector, and they share some of the needs when it comes to software development. We scheduled a call and talked for a bit just to get to know each other, and to hear about their idea. Later on, we had a lot of video calls to discuss the process, features, terms, and to introduce the dev team to our client. I believe that communication is the key to any successful collaboration.

“And when did that happen?”

  Anna : We got the project in September 2019.

“Oh, well, some time had passed since that. Do you recall, what was your first impression of a client?”

  Yana : I haven’t talked to them much as after we launched the development we discussed things in messengers to keep it as effective as possible. But I do remember they seemed patient and really sweet.

  Olena : I know, right! My first impression was that they are very good people and very passionate about their startup! As I remember, it was the first startup they had in mind and I think they’ve done their best. And it seemed to me that they were a bit nervous.

  Anna : I could relate to their feelings! This was not a long time since I got a job at MassMedia Group, and MyScore AS was of crucial importance for me since I wanted to do my best and impress the team. Of course, I had years of previous experience and great support within the team, but you know how it’s like when you start a new project from scratch at your new workplace. I was as passionate as I was nervous.

“I think every one of us knows the feeling. And I do think that it’s actually an interesting insight into a development company’s life - we can be nervous about meetings as much as our clients sometimes. But, anyway, let’s talk more about the project itself. What was it all about?”

  Yana : Well, it’s pretty simple actually. You see, MyScore AS is basically all about a score that the company has compared to others on the market. As a fintech project, the software was meant to show if the company is financially stable and attractive for investors. You may have a business of your own and willing to see your position on the market, or you may be an investor planning to put your money into something - using MyScore AS you can get the real and relevant data on if it’s going to be profitable.

“Wow, seems neat! That’s clear. By the way, can you use MyScore AS somewhere outside of Norway?”

  Yana : It’s a website so you can use it wherever you want. However, this won’t change the fact that it provides info only about Norwegian companies.

“Yeah, I got it [laughs]”

 

Fintech case study: What were the main tasks of MyScore AS

“So, what were the main tasks we needed to complete?”

  Roman : This is an easy one, I’ll take it. Our main tasks were:

- to create a service that allows managers to see all the financial information about any company in Norway;

- to allow users to check the credit score and rating for any officially registered company;

- to add a custom designed badge with MyScore AS AS logo and the score that certain company has on their website to attract investors or other business collaborations;

- to create a user profile where customer can manage products purchased on the system;

- a notification system that helps customers to be aware of the changes on any officially;

- registered company’s financial status.

 

 

Fintech case study: MyScore AS creation

“How long did it take to develop the fintech software for MyScore AS?”

  Anna : I had to look through my old reports, but it took approximately 1000 hours for both parts of the projects. It’s an average though. If you develop an MVP, for example, it will take somewhere around 500 hours.

“Was the client alright with it? I mean, it’s a lot of time. Have we done anything to make it go quicker.”

  Olena : Yes, we know that it’s quite a lot of time, and if to think about it as a period - sure, it would take too much time. Time that our client didn’t have. That’s why we arranged the development in such a way, that we had one team to develop the report and notification system, and the other one to create the website for MyScore AS. This has made the process much faster.

  Anna : I paid a lot of attention to communication with the client. Even with the most detailed development plan, we came to the point when our client’s requirements changed as their needs changed. We had a request for a simple system, but soon the client needed more. It’d be nice if you could include screenshots of the MyScore AS interface, so we could show off a bit of what we’ve done.

“Oh well, that’s a bit dramatic, don’t you think? It would be a nice time to ask about something less complicated. Can you remember anything funny from this fintech case?”

  Anna : Definitely! I remember when we were working on the project design and different versions of it. On the PDF reports we designed, there is always the customer’s company name, and one day our client called us and said that the company’s name doesn’t fit into the report! He sent us a screenshot of an incredibly long word and, of course, it was not fitting in. The word was too big! I even asked them if there are any limitations in Norwegian for how many letters the word can contain, and they said there are none!

Someone even considered adding artificial intelligence to the project that day. The idea was to create AI that can split words logically just to make them smaller. Was it you, Roman?

  Roman : I guess not. I can’t recall.

 

Fintech case study: What were the challenges in MyScore AS development

“I think we're pretty much done with talking about the project itself. You know that the most challenging thing in the development process is to form a reliable team. How were we choosing people for this fintech case specifically?”

  Olena : Oh, I remember how it was. Since we were working both on SaaS and a website at the same time, we decided to have 2 teams working on the project to deliver a solution as soon as possible. I really wanted to involve our business analyst Yana in the SaaS project since I had worked with her on the fintech case before, and I was sure about her hard and soft skills. So she became the first member of the team. When the time had come to choose a second project manager for a website, I said that Anna could do an excellent job. She worked with us for a short time at the time, but I thought that she had what it takes for this project. And she had the same temper as our client and great analytical skills, so I thought this would make collaboration effective for all of us.

“And was it the right choice? Has it made the collaboration more efficient?”

  Anna : To be honest, it was a bit complicated. Mostly because of the changes we had on the go. It was their first startup, so it’s easy to understand. But it will help you to cut costs and time, if you’ll tell the development company you work with everything you want in your, since it is easier to develop something from scratch in the beginning, then to integrate a feature into already operating code.

“Did you face other challenges along the way?”

  Yana : There was one thing about the Norwegian financial system. It is a fintech case, right? We needed to create a fintech software where users can see all the financial info about companies, and it was a difficult task since it was all about Norwegian system which is complicated. We had to do our own research. It just took a bit more attention and hard work.

  Roman : How you forgot me.

“No, we didn't. I was just about to ask you what was the most complicated on the technical side.”

  Roman : We needed software to generate a complex PDF file and in the beginning, we didn’t know how big it would get. So, we decided to use Google Puppeteer for PDF generation. Right now we have a different server just for this which receives requests with the data for the file, checks if all rights are there, and generates the PDF itself.

One of the most complicated things was also confidential data. We had a lot of it, and we needed to pay attention to its security through constant logging and checks.

One of the most complicated parts of the process was integration with the external service for data synchronization. They didn’t have any test API and documentation for any complicated situation, so we had to monitor all the time if everything operates correctly.

“Sounds like we’ve done our best!”

You can find what our client - Syed S. Hussain thinks of our work.

Fintech case study: Technologies and features of MyScore AS

“One really simple question. Tell me about the features we developed? What can a random user do in MyScore AS?”

  Roman : Main features we created are:

- Generation of a PDF report with detailed information about the company

- Daily update of the report

- The ability to integrate the company's badge on the client's website (with current score, which is daily updated)

- Notifications to the email and user’s profile in the system

- A user profile which had a list of purchases: reports, badges, notifications.

We were able to implement all these functions into the MVP, so when we finished the product it was not very different from a minimal viable product. It's normal. That means the minimum viable product embodied what should have been in the finished version. If our client needs something to improve or add to the project - there is always a possibility of evolution.

“And about that, yes! On what stage is the project right now?”

  Olena : I’d say it is maintenance moving towards evolution. We’re maintaining the existing software, checking on the updates, keeping an eye on the correct work of every element. Also, we are discussing new design and branding opportunities for MyScore AS, but we’re not developing anything right now.

“Our clients also said something like this about it.”

“And what were the technologies we used?”

  Yana : Laravel 6, PHP 7.4, Docker, Vue.js, Chrome, Puppeteer, Postgres db.

“We’ve had a nice talk, though. And I think it is the time for us to wrap it up.”

 

Fintech case study: the results

“So, how do you think this project finished?”

  Anna : It was a good experience and we’re happy that we had our part in their startup success. From my perspective, I can say that we’ve managed to keep up to all the deadlines and work according to the changing conditions on the market and the business itself. It was not always easy, but we released the project in time and our client is satisfied with the result. We’re still checking in from time to time and if our client needs to improve the software we’re more than happy to work on it once more [smiling]. The sky is a limit, as people say! Some can build a business out of the software and this fintech case study is a great example.

This is what our client had said about the impact this project has had on their business:

“Our conversation has come to an end. Can you say something to the client and the project itself?”

  Anna : I wish them to have great success and hope to work with them once more! They are really kind and open-minded people and I’m happy to have this experience.

  Roman : Evolution and prosperity - that is what I wish them in the future. It’s their first startup and I hope it’ll turn out well.

  Olena : I just hope to stay in touch and get more updates on the current life of the project. I will be happy to hear that the project is growing and soon we’ll be able to add more and more financial products into the system!

  Yana : I want to wish them growth and success since it matters most in the startup. MyScore AS team did an impressive job and I hope they’ll have only reliable partners on their way.

***

On the behalf of MassMedia Group, we wish you expansion and wealth, we want to hear about your project one day as about the one of most successful Norweigan startups. We hope that growth and prosperity are the only things that await you in the future.

If we have startuppers, among our readers, who are still thinking about working with the development company - contact us and ask all the questions that are bothering you.

Quotes marked with * were altered for text enhancement purposes