The Journey of Developing a Proprietary Platform with Internal and External Teams - E4

In this exciting episode of Software Meets Business, host Richard Bundock sits down with Tal Brockmann to dive into how he built an in-house team to develop the platform, his decision to hire external help to build the SDK, and his experience managing both internal and external teams.

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[00:00:10]

Rich: Welcome to another episode of Software Meets Business. I’m thrilled to have Tal Brockman, CEO and founder of Finovest, joining us today. Welcome, Tal!

Tal: Happy to be here.

[00:00:35]

Rich: Let’s dive in. This podcast explores the intersection of software and business. Can you give us some background on Finovest and what it’s about?

Tal: Sure. I’m not a software guy—I come from the business side. I spent years working in Israel’s largest investment houses, gaining deep expertise in capital markets, trading, investment advisory, portfolio management, and compliance. Around the age of 40, I started asking myself the big questions: Am I doing the right thing? How can I make a difference in my industry? I realized I couldn’t answer these questions while working my demanding job, so I quit to clear my mind and think about the problems I wanted to solve in the investment advisory world. That’s how Finovest was born—by starting with a business problem and working backward to develop a software solution that could truly make an impact.

[00:02:00]

Rich: So, you quit your job without a fully fleshed-out plan?

Tal: Correct. I had a vague idea, but not enough clarity to execute it while juggling a full-time job. It was a leap of faith. It happened just before my twins were born, which was like the last chance to take such a big risk.

[00:03:00]

Rich: What problem were you trying to solve with Finovest?

Tal: The problem is rooted in the traditional investment advisory model. Advisors typically manage 300–400 clients each, which makes it impossible for them to proactively reach out to clients with real-time market opportunities. Our platform changes this dynamic by enabling advisors to generate hyper-personalized investment recommendations for thousands of clients simultaneously. These recommendations are sent directly to clients’ mobile phones with real-time data, actionable insights, and a single-tap approval process. Behind the scenes, our proprietary trading model automates the entire flow, from compliance to executing trades. It’s a win-win: advisors provide better service, and clients get real-time, personalized recommendations.

[00:09:08]

Rich: That’s fascinating. Let’s talk about how you actually got this built. You mentioned you don’t have a software background, so how did you begin?

Tal: I had no software experience, but I was fortunate to have a partner who’s a doctor of mathematics and builds algorithmic trading systems globally. He happens to be my brother-in-law. At the start, I approached him with a simple question: If I ever build a startup, would you help me with the trading automation piece? He agreed, which gave me the confidence to dream big.

[00:10:25]

Rich: How did you go from dreaming big to executing?

Tal: At first, I only thought about the end user experience—clients getting personalized recommendations with one tap. But I hadn’t considered the 90% of work behind the scenes: how advisors generate those recommendations, compliance workflows, and integration with financial institutions. We joined an accelerator program run by Citibank, and one of Israel’s leading banks became interested in our concept. They scheduled a meeting three weeks out, and we had no working product—just mockups and a vague idea. During those three weeks, my partner, my wife (a designer), and I worked 21 hours a day to invent an entirely new flow for generating personalized recommendations at scale. By the time of the meeting, we had a fully articulated concept, screens, and a prototype that wowed the bank.

[00:14:34]

Rich: How did you eventually start building the actual software?

Tal: After that initial meeting, we knew we needed to write code. My partner reached out to someone he’d worked with before, who became our CTO. He brought in another developer, and the three of us—along with my partner’s guidance—started building. I focused on the business and user experience while the developers worked on the backend and frontend. Our team was tiny but incredibly efficient.

[00:19:42]

Rich: Did you use external teams at any point?

Tal: Yes, we outsourced specific, non-core tasks to external teams. For example, things like small integrations or peripheral features. However, we quickly learned that outsourcing comes with risks. Some projects returned with too many bugs, and explaining our complex platform to external developers took significant time. Eventually, we decided to slow down and focus on building the core product internally.

[00:25:10]

Rich: That’s a valuable lesson. How did working with banks impact your pace?

Tal: Banks move incredibly slowly. Early on, we realized that even though we felt like we were moving at a snail’s pace, it was faster than the banks. We used their slow timelines to our advantage by focusing on perfecting our core product while integrating incrementally.

[00:27:51]

Rich: What was it like the first time your platform processed a live recommendation?

Tal: It was surreal. I was the first client, as I happen to bank with our first partner. I received a recommendation, clicked “Approve,” and watched the orders flow through the system, execute on the market, and return confirmation notifications. Everyone on the team was emotional—it was the culmination of years of hard work.

[00:34:12]

Rich: You mentioned pivoting toward retail investors. What led to that decision?

Tal: The explosion of retail investors during COVID changed the market. These investors are active and eager for guidance, but they often rely on unreliable sources like social media. Our platform is perfectly positioned to offer retail investors professional, compliant investment advice. We decided to adapt our offering for brokerage firms that serve retail clients.

[00:35:21]

Rich: How did you approach this pivot technically?

Tal: Many brokerage firms in Israel don’t even have their own mobile apps—they rely on external solutions. To address this, we developed an SDK that integrates seamlessly with their existing systems. This approach makes it easy for them to adopt our platform without overhauling their infrastructure. We partnered with a Polish development firm known for its expertise in UX and mobile design. Their professionalism and ability to think beyond just development were a game-changer.

[00:39:53]

Rich: What’s next for Finovest?

Tal: The retail investor market is maturing, and we’re positioned to connect these investors with professional advisors. Our long-term vision includes launching our own mobile app to directly serve retail clients while continuing to support financial institutions. To scale globally, we’ll need the right international partner—someone who understands local markets and has the resources to support expansion.

[00:45:00]

Rich: Tal, your story is inspiring. Thank you so much for sharing your journey with us.

Tal: Thank you for having me.