Juan
Garcia
At MapleBank, getting your money working for you is easy with our three-step approach: Learn, Save, Invest.
View PrototypeAn independent approached me to explore opportunities in the banking sector. The objective was to create a digital banking experience that educates Canadians about investment options, builds trust in choosing our bank, and encourages saving as a first step towards investing. Building on this idea, I set out to create both the brand identity and the website for the project.
YEAR
2023
SERVICES
UX & UI Design
CLIENT
Carlos Fierro | Relationship Banker at RBC
SECTOR
Banking
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To design an all-in-one banking solution for newcomers to Canada, I started with a competitive analysis to identify market gaps while keeping the problem statement in focus: educating users, building confidence, and encouraging saving and investing. An early client-provided persona also guided the research and contributed to discovering the following key competitors:
RBC offers a full range of banking and investment tools, including a newcomer program and wealth management options. It’s trusted and comprehensive, but the platform can feel complex and overwhelming for first-time users like Carmella. Simplifying onboarding and making investment tools more approachable are key opportunities.
Tangerine provides no-fee accounts and an intuitive mobile experience, ideal for basic banking and budgeting. Its simplicity is a strength, but it lacks advanced investment tools and in-person support, limiting guidance for users ready to invest
Wise excels in international transfers with low fees and multi-currency support, perfect for newcomers moving money globally. However, it isn’t a full-service bank, lacking cash deposits, bill payments, and investment options, which limits long-term financial growth.
As the client had defined a target audience, we worked collaboratively to create a detailed persona representing users most likely to use the platform:
Carmella moved to Montreal from Mexico to study biochemistry. She loves spending time in the library and occasionally staying out til early in the morning with friends. In between school and French classes, she works as a TA and at the reception desk of the university lobby to pay her day-to-day expenses. Her parents assist with her tuition and every Sunday she spends an hour Facetiming with them.
• Achievement: To make sure she is taking full advantage of her expensive foreign education and land a prestigious job.
• No anxiety: As a high-performer in a difficult major, she wants to avoid being overwhelmed.No anxiety: As a high-performer in a difficult major, she wants to avoid being overwhelmed.
• Pay rent and small bills without accumulating too much debt.
• Receive money from her parents abroad and exchange it to CADTravel once a year to see her parents in a difficult major, she wants to avoid being overwhelmed.
• Travel once a year to see her parents.
• Make her parents proud.
• Integrate with her new friends and have time to spend with them.
Upon identifying candidates who matched our target audience, we conducted a moderated focus group to validate assumptions and uncover insights. The session included 6 participants aged 20–28 who had moved to Canada within the past three years for studies or work. The 90-minute session was structured into three parts:
Participants were asked about their initial banking experiences in Canada, the challenges they faced during onboarding, and their level of investment knowledge and habits when managing savings and international transfers. At every stage, responses were voluntary.
We introduced participants to RBC, Tangerine, and Wise and asked them to complete realistic tasks, such as locating the international transfer feature, exploring investment products, and identifying exchange fees. Throughout the process, we observed hesitation points, navigation friction, and moments of uncertainty.
After reviewing each platform, participants reflected on what influenced higher trust in each company. Clear onboarding flows, transparent fee structures, and beginner-friendly investment guidance were consistently mentioned as key factors in building confidence.
After conducting the focus group, I synthesized the qualitative data to uncover recurring themes and pain points. To translate these insights into actionable opportunities, I used the How Might We framework, reframing the most common challenges into solution-oriented questions. This approach led to four key “How might we?” opportunities:
How might we help newcomers set themselves up for success to achieve long-term saving goals?
How Might We help newcomers achieve short term saving goals?
How Might We empower newcomers to make financial decisions?
How might we help customers understand Canadian investment accounts?
After identifying the most common financial challenges faced by new users, I outlined the key features our platform needed, both to differentiate from competitors and to address essential newcomers needs. These features aim to solve our problem statement: helping users learn about investment accounts, build savings habits, and ultimately start investing.
Interactive courses that teach users about Canadian investment accounts and financial literacy. Users earn points for completing lessons, quizzes, and challenges, which can be redeemed for rewards or automatically deposited into their investment accounts.
A micro-savings tool that rounds up users’ everyday purchases to the nearest dollar and automatically transfers the difference into a designated savings or investment account.
An interactive simulation that allows users to experiment with different investment strategies using virtual funds. Users can explore real market scenarios, understand the impact of risk and diversification, and track potential outcomes—all without risking actual money
To drive web sign-ups, I designed a 'value-first' onboarding flow. Instead of asking users to create an account right away, we hooked them with a smart investment calculator to show them their potential returns. This quick win naturally led them through a short questionnaire and right into account creation. Once signed in, they landed on a personalized dashboard with their savings, finances, and tailored learning materials all in one place. Here are the results:
After defining the main user flow, I conducted multiple UX usability tests with four potential users and two UX designer colleagues to gather actionable feedback and iterate on the experience. The insights gathered directly informed key refinements, which were implemented in the final high-fidelity prototype.
Added additional “?” tooltips to clarify key terminology and reduce cognitive load.
Expanded the onboarding flow with additional screens to better guide first-time users.
Improved visual hierarchy within the user dashboard to enhance clarity and prioritization.
Refined the transition between the testing investment environment and the live version to prevent user confusion and errors.
Simplified the investment calculator inputs to reduce friction and improve completion rates.
Strengthened trust signals by adding clearer fee breakdowns and contextual reassurance throughout key decision points.
The final high-fidelity prototype reflects an iterative, user-centered process shaped by usability testing and peer feedback. Key improvements, including clearer onboarding, stronger visual hierarchy, simplified inputs, improved environment transitions, and enhanced trust signals reduced friction and increased user confidence.
