Telecom unlocks a new value stream by becoming a Neobank

Help We4G become a leader in a crowded local telecom market and create a new value stream by offering secure and easy-to-use banking services to its customers.

SENLA helped We4G create a custom banking architecture, capable of running 1MM transactions per second, supporting fraud monitoring, issuing virtual cards, and P2P payments.

We designed and developed native iOS and Android clients and assisted We4G to pass local regulators audit in just 2 months.

We4G deployed our skilled resources and capabilities and combined them with existing infrastructure to create a competitive advantage none of its rivals could replicate in short or even long term.

Customer’s adoption rate of new banking services reached 84% after the first year and allowed We4G to position itself not only as a Telecom Provider, but also as a full Bank Service Provider.

We4G is one of the largest telecom providers in Israel with more than a million of subscribers.

When the Israeli government announced an initiative that would allow companies to offer banking services to their customers, We4G decided it was a perfect opportunity to expand its existing service portfolio and differentiate itself from its rivals.

The plan was ambitious: to transform into a Neobank that would support most innovative financial services, such as NFC and QR code payments, P2P transfers, and the ability to apply for a loan or a credit line right from a phone.

The execution would require building a custom banking architecture that would pass local regulator audit and innovative iOS and Android apps that would exceed customers expectations.

All of this had to be done within 6 months.

We4G started looking for a reliable engineering team that could deliver high-level technical solutions and adhere to a strict list of requirements set by the financial regulator. These requirements were to ensure the company offers the utmost level of security for all its customers.

We4G was impressed right from the start by our scalable, modern solution based on microservices architecture, that included layers of business logic, data collection, backend, and frontend, UI/UX, and integration of external systems.

The first week of We4G and SENLA working together was spent creating and ideating an underlying technical architecture that on one hand would adhere to strict government standards, and on the other would impress customers so they would feel confident enough to switch to We4G for their banking needs.

We4G requirements included creating a custom Payments Gateway, Fraud Monitoring, Payments Authorizations, Payment Back Office and third-party integrations.

The system had to support a wide variety of financial tools and services offered to its customers.

After completing the initial design and vision of the system architecture, we moved on to working on design concepts for the native apps. It was paramount to deliver a sophisticated, polished and easy-to-use experience to We4G’s customers.

For the tech stack we went with industry standard Java, Hibernate, and Spring. We wanted to make sure the system would be stable even under a heavy load of transactions (up to 1MM), stress-resilient and scalable.

It was clear that the project of this complexity and urgency required an innovative approach to succeed under strict timelines set by the customer.

We adopted a 2-weeks sprint schedule and released new demos to We4G every Friday to get their  input and gather feedback.

After a few weeks it was clear that we had to bring a local delivery manager to Israel. This helped us bridge our cultural backgrounds and move faster in dev cadence and communication.

When the project was finished, we partnered with KPMG to pass the local financial regulator audit. It took only 2 months for our banking solution to get the official approval.

Who doesn’t like the convenience of banking without the need of visiting a branch?

In this world dominated by technology, commerce, society and life must flow digitally. In order to keep up with the shifting social paradigm, We4G had taken a big leap forward to transform from being a just Telecom Provider to a fully-fledged Bank Service Provider.

We4G and SENLA’s collaboration proves that embracing innovation and putting customers first can open up new value streams even in such a traditional space as telecom providers.