SpellSystems

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the main shareholder of Technology Metals Market, an investment holding with investments across a dozen technology metal supply chains and the owner of the only physical single venue metals exchange in the world.

For what projects/services did your company hire SpellSystems, and what were your goals?

We required a custom built and dynamic exchange that could incorporate leading technology with reliable operations. Our goal was to become the leading physical metals exchange in the world.

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

We interviewed approximately 35 teams around the world. There were many factors that mattered. Timeliness and reliability were number one, but skills, innovation service levels, trustworthiness and integrity were all critical factors that Spell Systems scored highest in. They also did the project on budget.

Describe the scope of work in detail, including the project steps, key deliverables, and technologies used.

Spell Systems started by customising and re-engineeering the Stellar blockchain into Minifinium Blockchain, improving vastly the functionality. They built the entire exchange and the technology implements all the market essentials including issuance, custody, primary market trading, clearance and settlement, accounting and compliance. The source code for these components is fully managed by us with no external dependencies. Blue-chip third-party solutions are used to provide specialised functionality like KYC, secondary market order matching or banking. Our exchange uses state of the art software development and maintenance approach with release planning, continuous integration/continuous delivery tools and multi-layer application deployment and testing environment.

How many people from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

The team started with about 5 people, project managers and developers and quickly evolved into a team of 20+ people all managed by Spell Systems including Project Manager, Back-end developer (Senior), Blockchain developer (Senior) Blockchain developer, Front-end developer (Senior), Front-end developer, DevOps, UX/UI engineer, QA engineer, Product Manager, Duty System Administrator (UK, GDPR), UX/UI engineer, Mobile Developer, Back-end developer, Back-end developer (Junior), Education Platfrom Engineer, Information Security Enginee and Analysts, Data-engineers and Software Infrastructure

Can you share any measurable outcomes of the project or general feedback about the deliverables?

The core technology was a backbone to building the value we intended to achieve as a corporation. On the back of the technology, we grew the business from startup to a $10 million value to $50 million + value in less than 2 years. The exchange is still the only physical metals exchange in the world.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness.

Project management style is is always available and very proactive. Always on time and always eager to participate and take on challenges. The most important aspect of their involvement is that they are always ready to dive deep into the unknown and figure our the simplest solution.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

Out of all the amazing skills and constant full effort, their most important trait was reliability. You can always count on the Spell Systems team, even in the hardest and most difficult moments. They are more than just a great tech team. They bring their heart and soul to the project.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

We have zero regrets from our partnership with Spell Systems. Anything they required to learn better along the way, they spent the time to quickly master. They have been an amazing partners throughout.

Please describe your company and your position there.

As the CTO at eDoctor Africa, I am responsible for all technology in use by our company and our technology supply chain. eDoctor Africa is an online and mobile platform providing remote access to primary and secondary healthcare practitioners, for the Anglophone, Francophone and Lusophone markets in Africa, allowing consumers to use mobile money and other digital payment methods to secure access to healthcare services from licensed practitioners.

For what projects/services did your company hire SpellSystems, and what were your goals?

eDoctor wanted a bespoke software platform, to deliver SaaS Telehealth and Telemedicine services, delivered using dominant mobile operating systems; Android, iOS and suitable device types; laptops for medical practitioners, tablets for medical practitioners and laptops or smartphones for consumers. Our platform was to allow video call, audio call, chat and SMS are modes of care and communication. Patient Electronic Medical Records, Practitioner scheduling, Financial Reporting and integration with payment gateways were some of the key features we required. Development was to be cognisant of standards frameworks for this industry vertical, including SNOMED, FIHR/HL7,LOINC.

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

We met Spellsystems from a referral from a private investor in UK who was considering them for a project. We reviewed their references, case studies and capacity for projects of this type and size. Key deciding factors was their agility, their transparency and responsiveness in communication and dedication to quality.

Describe the scope of work in detail, including the project steps, key deliverables, and technologies used.

technologies including native development of mobile applications on Android, native development of mobile applications on Apple iOS, web application in browser applications which have significant market share. Embedded technologies included 3rd party APIs for payment gateways (Stripe, pawapay, Net1 DPO), video calling from Vonage, SMS handling from Twillio, and custom integration to medical sector AI engines. Security profile for the platform was to include 3-party user verification with SSO from Google and Apple and high levels of data security to meet requirements from USA HIPPA act and EU GDPR.

How many people from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

The were six (6) full time members in the team including Scrum Master / Project Manager Quality Assurance Tester Lead developer Android Lead developer iOS Lead developer webApp Product Manager UI/Graphic designer

Can you share any measurable outcomes of the project or general feedback about the deliverables?

The delivery of Spellsystems objectives can be seen in our active telemedicine service at https://www.edoctor.africa.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness.

Project was delivered following SCRUM methodology with two week Sprint cycles and iterative releases to us. Tools includes Jira for backlog and Sprint management, Trello for conceptual planning, Google Applications, Telegram for conversation and Zoom/Meet for calls.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

SpellSystems have an impressive rate of delivery, clear communication and in depth understanding of technologies. We had a smooth working relationship and project delivery.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

None

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m an executive at Bond Group, a company that has operated in the UAE for over 30 years. We’ve done a lot of major electronic logging device (ELD) system integrations for important landmarks and notable projects within our region. Our group also has a managed IT services and cybersecurity company.

What challenge were you trying to address with SpellSystems?

We had the opportunity to develop a blockchain project, so we hired SpellSystems to help us out.

What was the scope of their involvement?

SpellSystems helped us with our blockchain development project, using Solana as the main blockchain technology.

What is the team composition?

We worked with four different people from SpellSystems, including the CPO, the CTO, the head of product, and another person.

How did you come to work with SpellSystems?

We found them through a reference. One of the companies investing in this project recommended SpellSystems because they had already worked with them.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent $85,000 on this project.

What is the status of this engagement?

Although we met SpellSystems in 2021, our project started around July 2022, and SpellSystems completed their work in November 2022. Still, they’re working on small changes and tweaks as we get ready to launch. Moreover, we worked together on another project, and they’re currently working on a web development project for one of our partners in the group.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

SpellSystems’ development work was great; we were very happy with their professionalism and work level. Moreover, we were also satisfied with the outcome of the other project we worked on.

Although the blockchain product is still to be launched, we’ll launch a new company that will leverage this technology. Therefore, we’re still working on our end on other moving pieces so that we can implement a full release of this product.

How did SpellSystems perform from a project management standpoint?

SpellSystems’ project management was very good. Although we had some delays, those were a few small ones, and they didn’t impact the project in any way. Their team completed their scope of work on time and within the budget we originally set.

What did you find most impressive about them?

SpellSystems’ work was very organized and structured as we moved through each project phase. Our entire project was broken down into phases based on prioritization, and their team demonstrated excellent organizational skills by doing so.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, not really.