How to make a mobile Bitcoin App

Bitcoin has revolutionized the internet world. Users can use virtual money to buy very real things. Several years ago, it seemed like something fantastic, but today it has become a reality.

But the question arises, how to operate with money that you cannot touch? The answer is simple enough with Bitcoin wallets. Let's dive into the world of Bitcoin and learn the must-have features of this kind of app and proper tech stack for various platforms.

What is Bitcoin and How Bitcoin Wallets Work?

Before creating a mobile Bitcoin application, you need to understand what Bitcoin is and how the mobile Bitcoin apps will interact with it.

Bitcoin is a type of electronic currency with which transactions are made to secure and encrypted 16-character addresses. Bitcoins themselves can be bought from online merchants or “mined.”

Now let's take a look at how electronic Bitcoin wallets work. Bitcoin wallets are used for transactions using Bitcoins. In simple terms, the transaction uses the principle of asymmetric key cryptography. In a transaction from one wallet to another, the first wallet transfers ownership of the Bitcoins to the second wallet. Transaction data is stored on the Bitcoin Blockchain.

Now that we have figured out what bitcoin is and how bitcoin wallets work, it's time to disassemble the vital features for this kind of apps.

Must-Have Features for Bitcoin App

Bitcoin wallets are quite unique applications with their own set of interesting features. In addition to them, such applications also contain functionality that is quite ordinary for the user. Let's take a look at each feature separately.

Sign Up and Login

This feature has already become commonplace, and in most apps, it’s the first thing the user sees.

For a Bitcoin application, this function is quite important as it ensures the user's wallet’s security.

When developing this feature, it’s very important to maintain a balance and make the authorization procedure simple and convenient, since a complex or long authorization process can annoy or even scare off the user.

Wallet

This is the central feature around which everything revolves, and it is fundamental. On this screen, the user can view information about the account, check the wallet balance and transaction history. A simple yet strict design will ensure smooth use of the app. Don't overload the interface.

One of the most important functions of this section is sending bitcoins and accepting them from other users. No Bitcoin application can do without this feature.

Real-Time Conversion Rates

The price of bitcoins never costs and changes almost every hour. It is vitally important for every user who owns Bitcoin to know the price of bitcoin at a given moment in time since an investment that was profitable a couple of minutes ago can now bring losses.

This is why a real-time Bitcoin exchange rate must be present in every mobile Bitcoin application.

QR Codes

QR codes are quite an elegant and convenient solution if you want to provide fast bitcoin transactions.

If you create an application without this feature, users will need to manually enter a 16-character key for each transaction, which is tedious and confusing.

In addition to the inconvenience, this transaction method significantly increases the risk of an erroneous transaction, since the user can easily make a mistake when typing the code. So, QR codes are a real salvation for this kind of app.

Saved Addresses

Another feature that significantly increases the comfort of using a Bitcoin wallet. The user can save the most frequently used transaction addresses in order to have quick access to them in the future and make instant transactions.

Shopping Function

This feature allows users to make purchases by paying with Bitcoins straight from their wallets. One of the most useful functions for this kind of apps, thanks to which users will use the app more often.

For the correct implementation of this feature, you need to create a complete list of places that accept payment in Bitcoins, and the more and more diverse this list, the better. It would also be a great idea to introduce the display of such places on the map so that the user can easily find the nearest establishments and quickly pay for the services provided.

Best Tech Stack for Bitcoin App

The set of technologies for creating such app types usually depends on the platform on which the app is aimed for.

Tech stack for Android often includes Java for front-end and various APIs for back-end like Node JS or Python.

The best tech stack for iOS will be Swift programming language and Node JS or Python for backend implementation.

For the app’s web version, the best choice will be Angular JS 4.0, HTML5, and CSS to build the frontend. For the backend part, it would be wise to use Node JS. To set up a powerful server, you can use AWS that greatly decreases overall website development cost.

Wrapping Up

We have covered the most important aspects of creating a mobile Bitcoin app, and now you are fully armed with the knowledge to create your own Bitcoin wallet.  

Author’s bio

Vitaly Kuprenko is a writer for Cleveroad. It’s a web and mobile app development company with headquarters in Ukraine. He enjoys writing about technology and digital marketing.

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