Wally, a personal finance iPhone application launched worldwide this week, has been downloaded over 10,000 times to date, and claimed the top position in finance apps in the Apple app store in than six countries.

The app, which has more than 9,500 active users, won first place prize for best new startup in the Middle East at the recently concluded ArabNet 2013 Beirut.

Wally helps users anywhere in the world keep track of what they spend and the details, in their own currencies. After nine months of private testing, the app is now available for free, and user privacy is ensured as user-generated data is only saved on the phone.

“The idea behind Wally is that our personal finances are usually a mess, and we just don’t have the right tools to manage them,” said Saeid Hejazi, CEO and cofounder, Wally.

“Some of us use Excel, some use a paper and pen, and then there are some people that actually learned how to use a type of personal accounting software – bless them. The truth is, we’re not all born gifted accountants.

"The feedback from users and tech bloggers alike has been phenomenal – it seems people are looking for exactly what we have created," he added.

“We’re on a mission to solve our problem and one that many people, everywhere, are facing. Ultimately, we want to be able to give users a comprehensive view on their finances; what comes in, what goes out, and what is left in savings for emergencies or special treats,” Hejazi noted.

“As of today, we’re pretty proud of what we’ve done and that is to help users keep track of the money going out, which is why we’re mobile only at the moment; quick ways of logging your expenses, scanning your receipts, easy to understand graphs and more.”

The next steps for Wally are already under development, with an Android version of the app in the pipeline, he explained.

Web access and integration will follow, giving users more detailed information, analysis tools and visualization, if they want them. Wally is currently being translated into nine languages following user feedback from around the world.

“In terms of the finance tracking features, Wally users will soon be able to enter their income and use the app to plan and budget different aspects of their spending. Right now we help them capture what goes out. Our next plan is to capture what they make, their income and help them compare the two,” said Hejazi.

“When it comes to the question of how we make money, the simple answer is, we don’t. Wally is completely free and doesn’t have any ads. The idea is to build a really good basic version that everyone can use and love. As we build, we’ll be adding some premium type features that users will be able to pay for if they choose; probably anything from $15 to $25 a year, but we will never take away or limit the current features,” Hejazi concluded.

Wally is currently available free to download in the iPhone Apple app store. – TradeArabia News Service