Making a brand new exchange look safe enough to move money into.
Details
Duration
11
months
Category
Web3
scope
Branding
UX/UI
Website
Overview
Kuru came to us as a protocol on testnet. The technology worked, but there was no brand and nothing user-facing.
That's a problem in DeFi. People decide whether to connect a wallet in seconds, and a new exchange has no history to point at. Launch was one month out.
Approach
Built the brand identity from nothing, including logo, palette and usage rules
Mapped the information architecture before designing any screens
Designed the full DEX interface, covering swap, positions and vault strategy
Delivered a launch-ready product in one month
Stayed on for 11 months through post-launch iteration
Fravashi
,
Co-Founder
"From concept to launch in 1 month, Jon and Mat's work on our brand kit & DEX design was exceptional. Their team is talented, responsive, and a pleasure to work with."
The Call
Kuru was the first central limit order book on Monad, and it combined DEX features in a way nobody had shipped before. When you've built a genuine first, the obvious move is to make it look like one.
We didn't. New mechanics plus a new interface means learning two things at once, while deciding whether to put money into a protocol with no track record, on a chain with no track record. Unfamiliar reads as risky when funds are involved.
So the interface uses conventions people already know. Familiar patterns, familiar placement, nothing that makes a user work out where they are.
It means the product doesn't stand out in a screenshot. First movers usually want to.
Outcomes
Kuru went from testnet protocol with no brand to a launch-ready product in one month. The visuals have changed since. The information architecture and product structure we set are still what the exchange runs on. It has since raised $11.6M from Paradigm, Electric Capital and Credibly Neutral.