A lot has happened over the past three months! A2PB is moving from a project to a product. I finally figured out what a product built around A2PB might look like. This is a big step triggered by some key ideas I had during a trip with M. to Lanzarote just before Christmas 2022. These are some of the product corner stones and defining features:
- the future product is not only about portfolio management and portfolio performance tracking but also about the tracking of all of the user’s assets and liabilities (high-level) — over time and across accounts and currencies.
- The goal is to ensure maximum discretion and trust for the aggregated assets and liabilities tracking features. This is achieved by
- Offering the future product as an installable application (local data; not hosted on-line).
- Managing top-level asset and liability values manually or via import (not via connectivity to any accounts on-line).
- Guaranteeing to the user that the product doesn’t share any user data with the internet. The locally installed application only connects to an also locally installed Interactive Brokers TWS application. No outgoing network connection is made. This can be asserted on a computer via the operating system or a third party firewall.
- Conceptually, A2PB’s portfolio management “module” also made a big step forward: For a long time I had difficulties figuring out a way for users to manage portfolio weighting and re-balancing parameters. It was all a bit difficult and I hesitated putting the existing functionality into a product offering. This changed when I came up with some ideas on how to improve the user interface and, in particular, by implementing a more classic, percent-based weighting model. The new percent-based model is the default. The original, relative model is available as an option and still my personal preference (but might be too quirky for a lot of users).
- The application will be available for Windows and Mac OS.
- A2PB will most likely be renamed to InvMon, short for “investment monitor” – invmon.com.
The goal is to have the InvMon product ready for users by the end of 2023. To get there the following is missing:
- Technical improvements and testing
- Development of some added features for the paid version (there will be a free version)
- A product website
- Online help, in-app help, tutorials and application usability improvements
- Clarification of some legal questions. Licensing details.
- Pricing, on-line product purchase/payment and subscription management
A lot remains to be done. I have hardly ever been as motivated for anything in my life before – this is on par with the early years of ClubDesk. Every hour of this year needs to count in order to reach my 2023 goal.