EXCLUSIVE — PFM app Clarity Money is keeping up the growth it started at the beginning of the year, announcing more than 500,000 users of its app just under seven months after its launch.
Clarity’s growth can be attributed to its strong partnerships with other financial institutions, as well as with the Apple ecosystem: for example, the app is now integrated with Siri for iOS 11, as per the last update.
Most of Clarity’s users come from organic, non-paid channels, Chief Revenue Officer Colin Kennedy told Bank Innovation. It helps that the app is focused on providing “unbiased” financial advice and insights to its users, said Kennedy.
“What excites us most is [customers] are saying it’s not about one particular feature; they’re saying, ‘finally a company that’s giving us unbiased advice, that’s not trying to sell or advertise anything to me,” Kennedy said.
To deliver these insights, Clarity relies on a growing system of partnerships — like the integration with Acorns the company announced in July 2017 — as well as on technologies like APIs.
“We are effectively an API ecosystem with a partnership model; what that means is, we aren’t offering proprietary products,” Kennedy said. That means Clarity can onboard a partner into the app, and ensure the user has the ability to use both services. Users can currently invest in Acorns through the Clarity app, for instance.
The ability for a user to integrate what bank accounts or services they want, without friction, is a key draw for those who want the product-agnostic experience Clarity is offering.
The app’s user base is mostly Millennial users (though there is a growing segment of older users, said Kennedy), with a range of incomes, ages, and financial goals.
For now, Clarity is fully available for Apple users, as well as offering a web version of its service. Its Android app is coming within the next few weeks, said Kennedy; that program is currently in beta.