Cur8: Investment Platform

Time

2021 - 2024

Role

Founding Product Designer

Sector & Platform

Fintech, Web & Mobile

Cur8 Capital is a prominent London-based capital investment firm, managing approximately £70 million for around 2,000 investors as of 2024.


In 2019, I joined IslamicFinanceGuru, the parent company of Cur8 Capital, as the founding product designer. As the first design hire, I spearheaded the end-to-end design process, creating a comprehensive, two-tiered design system that effectively managed three distinct product areas.


In June 2023, I relocated to London, UK in order to collaborate more closely with the product & business team.

Objectives

  1. Increase # of Investors

  2. Increase in Investor Satisfaction

  3. Increase Assets Under Management (AUM)

Results

196K to 70M

196K to 70M

196K to 70M

Increase in AUM

8.3/10

8.3/10

8.3/10

User Satisfaction

+68%

68%

68%

Time Spent Increase

87.61%

87.61%

87.61%

Signups Increase

58.35%

58.35%

58.35%

Active Users Increase

>10min

>10min

>10min

Average Onboarding Time

Mayur Jethwa

Bank of America

Ex-Head of Cash Equities

Cur8 is the best investment platform in this field in my view. The breadth of opportunities, thorough due diligence and transparency provide for a strong investment process and peace of mind.

Abdul-Rahman Abbas

Abdul-Rahman

Abdul-Rahman

Co-founder of Pillars

I started investing with Cur8 with other family members a few years ago and have been very impressed with the quality of investments Cur8 has offered. The Cur8 team is very communicative and assuring. There is transparency in the process and the platform provides me with all legal documentation in one place.

How did we achieve all of it?

PRINCIPLES

  • Focusing on user

  • Alignment Before Execution

  • Learning & Unlearning

  • Leverage Systems

  • Scrappyness: Done is better than perfect

  • Focusing on user

  • Alignment Before Execution

  • Learning & Unlearning

  • Leverage Systems

  • Scrappyness: Done is better than perfect

TECHNIQUES

  • Listening to users: Survey, Interviews, Emails, Complaints & Analytics.

  • Defining & agreeing on problem: Clear Spec Docs, Userflows

  • Testing Assumptions: Wireframes, Prototypes, A/B Testing

  • Scale in Mind: Design Systems Implementation & Improvement

  • Keeping a pulse on our trajectory: Daily OKR Update

My Responsibilities

I've handled all UX, UI and Product design needs of Cur8 & IFG since 2021

Investment Steps I Improved in Cur8

  1. Onboarding

    Involves Signup, Login, Basic Info, Identity Verification (KYC), and more. This process must comply with stringent regulations from Financial Compliance authorities, making the onboarding design more complex than usual.

  2. Review of Investments

    Showcases startups and funds to investors, allowing them to review and assess opportunities through detailed summaries, documents, and pitch materials (PDF & video). These opportunities, called 'Live Deals,' represent a select few investments available for immediate action.

  3. Investing

    A challenging part of the process that involves:
    a) Determining how much investors want to invest.
    b) Supporting various investment methods, including Single User, Business/Entity Accounts, and Monthly/Quarterly Instalments.
    c) Handling payment methods: Card payments are often not viable without a specific license, complicating the process for investors.
    d) Confirming fund transfers and notifying investors when their funds are received. e) Tracking investment timelines.

  4. Measuring Performance

    Involves updating investors on the growth of their investments/portfolios. This is complex, as investments can be capital growth or income-based. Capital growth is measured by percentage increases in share price, while income-based growth is measured by dividends earned over time. Combining these metrics into a single comprehensive number is challenging.

  5. Getting Returns & Liquidation

    Involves transferring earnings to investors' accounts and providing visibility over their returns. Liquidation refers to investors taking their investments out.

Design Audit

User Research

Userflows

Wireframes & Prototypes

Design System

High Fidelity

Caroline Cracker

Abdul-Rahman

Abdul-Rahman

Head of Product at Cur8 Capital

"I worked with Ahmed for 2 years where he single handedly designed the Cur8 Capital mobile and web apps from scratch involving the creation of a new design system.

Ahmed was a pleasure to work with, continuously looked to improve and did a great job at balancing quality design with the constant need to ship features quickly."

January 2, 2024 | Caroline was my primary manager at Cur8

Isma'il Mustafa

Abdul-Rahman

Abdul-Rahman

Head of Operations at Cur8 Capital

"Ahmed is a design gem.

His passion and skill combine to make him a wizard at UIUX. It's inspiring and a pleasure to work alongside such a capable and knowledgeable colleague who is so easy-going and humble. Ahmed always exceeds expectations so it's always exciting seeing the fruits of his efforts.

August 3, 2022 | I collaborated with Isma'il as part of Design -Ops collaboration

Stack I use every day

Figma

Obsidian

Slack

Things 3

I specialise in

✦ Product Design

✦ Design Systems

✦ Data Intensive Apps

✦ Mobile Apps

✦ Web Apps

I'm available for new opportunities

Stack I use every day

Figma

Obsidian

Slack

Things 3

I specialise in

✦ Product Design

✦ Design Systems

✦ Data Intensive Apps

✦ Mobile Apps

✦ Web Apps

I'm available for new opportunities

Stack I use every day

Figma

Obsidian

Slack

Things 3

I specialise in

✦ Product Design

✦ Design Systems

✦ Data Intensive Apps

✦ Mobile Apps

✦ Web Apps

I'm available for new opportunities