Credify

A personal finance management tool designed to help newcomer students in Canada make informed financial decisions.

April 2024 - May 2024
THE PROJECT

Every year, thousands of students migrate to Canada for higher studies. While this opens the door to better opportunities, the financial burden is often overwhelming.
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A Montreal-based startup approached me with a clear vision: to design a simple yet impactful MVP for a personal finance platform aimed at empowering newcomer students in Canada to take control of their finances.

During this experience, I was tasked with designing the MVP from scratch, ensuring a seamless user experience tailored to student financial needs. My goal was to create an intuitive interface that simplifies budgeting, loan tracking, and investment planning.

MY ROLE
User research
Interviews, user surveys
Wireframing
Ideation, creation of models
UX Design
Wireframing, user flows, intuitive experience
THE PROBLEM
Managing money as a newcomer student is tough. Most budgeting apps and spreadsheets aren’t built for students, and professional financial advice? Way too expensive.

What students really need:

✅ A simple way to track expenses & savings

✅ Smart investment tips for small budgets

✅ Easy loan repayment planning

✅ Financial education to build better money habits

THE SOLUTION
When the client came to me, they had an idea but needed help shaping it into a real product. They had already done some research, and students told them they wanted mainly three things:


💰 Learn how to budget, save, and invest

🎓 Get rid of student loans faster

⚡ Quick, no-nonsense financial advice

So, I jumped into competitor research—looking at apps like Mint, Wealthsimple, and YNAB. Here’s what stood out:


📌 Most budgeting apps only help with short-term planning (a year or less).
📌 Long-term finance apps focus on either investing or saving—never both.
📌 No app really puts students first in managing all aspects of their money.

That’s where Credify comes in—to fill the gap and make financial management effortless for students. 🚀
FEATURE PRIORITIZATON

I used the MoSCoW method to categorize features into four groups: Must-Have, Should-Have, Could-Have, and Won’t-Have. Since this
was an MVP, the focus was on Must-Have and Should-Have features—ensuring the app delivers real value while staying lean.

Key Priorities:
📊 Long-term financial forecasting – Helping students plan ahead with confidence.
💰 Educational loan tracking – Making it easier to monitor repayment progress.

By narrowing the focus, we ensured the MVP would provide immediate value while laying the foundation for future enhancements!

Credify Core Features
LOAN REPAYMENT INSIGHTS
The app helps you pay off your loans faster by giving you smart, personalized tips. This way, you can make better financial decisions with confidence!
SAVING ACCOUNT OPTIONS
The platform makes it easy for students to find the right savings account based on their needs—whether it's for short-term goals, low risk, or flexibility in withdrawals.
COMPREHENSIVE INVESTMENT DASHBOARD
This dashboard provides a complete overview of your investment journey. Quick links offer access to detailed insights for deeper portfolio management.
THE RESULT

Managing money shouldn’t be complicated. Our goal was to create a platform that makes personal finance easy and accessible for newcomer students and immigrants in Canada.
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What we achieved:
🎯 A user-friendly design that simplifies budgeting & saving
🎯 Smart financial insights tailored to students’ needs
🎯 A solution that helps users confidently manage their money

The MVP is now helping the client secure their first investment round, proving its potential and setting the stage for future growth.