Creating the Brand Identity for the World’s First Unbiased Currency, Dai

November 16, 2019

The new logo for Dai, the world’s first unbiased currency.

As the Maker Foundation’s Design team considered new product interfaces for the release of Multi-Collateral Dai (MCD), they began to explore the bigger design picture for MakerDAO and the Dai stablecoin. After engaging in a months-long internal brand audit, exploring specific ideas of style changes, and conducting surveys among the MakerDAO community, the team saw an opportunity to evolve Dai’s branding. 

The Community Response

In June, the Design team published a 12-question survey to gauge Maker community sentiment around both the Dai and Maker brand logos, and the results were clear. Respondents largely expressed approval for a new Dai design. In contrast, with respect to the Maker logo, they signaled their desire to leave it untouched.

Further, results from additional discussions suggested that, while the original diamond-shaped Dai logo was well established in the crypto space, it didn’t visually harmonize with its function as a global currency that must be both quickly identifiable and easily recreated. No one in the groups we asked about Dai, specifically, identified the original logo design as a currency, and most were unsure of what the symbol was meant to represent.

The Dai symbol alongside popular global currencies.

Designing Dai as a Global Currency

The Maker Foundation and the larger MakerDAO community are confident that Dai can sit alongside the other major currencies of the world, from inside Bloomberg Terminal platforms to beside cash registers in coffee shops. The new Dai logo is memorable, powerful in its simplicity, and, unlike the old one, easy to draw and digitally replicate. These attributes are very likely to attract new users, increase adoption, and expand brand awareness.

Strengthen Brand Recognition for the Present and Future of Dai

In addition to the change in Dai branding, we are redesigning the MakerDAO website to improve how users interact with the Maker Protocol. All of these changes will help move Maker into the mainstream and allow Dai to be globally recognized as a currency. 

Please join us in our mission to shape the future of commerce on the blockchain. To learn more about Dai, read these Dai-related blog posts. To learn more about MakerDAO, join the conversation on the Maker Forum.

About Dai: Dai is the leading decentralized, asset-backed, stablecoin. Like traditional currencies, people can spend it, transfer it, and save it. But unlike traditional currencies, it is unbiased and always under user control.

November 16, 2019