Samuel Felipe, UI/UX & Web Designer, Anti-Design & No-Code Specialist. São Paulo, Brazil. — Violentto Digital Gallery. 46.638823° S, 46° 38′ 20″
Samuel Felipe, UI/UX & Web Designer, Anti-Design & No-Code Specialist. São Paulo, Brazil. — Violentto Digital Gallery. 46.638823° S, 46° 38′ 20″
CCHAINED - End-to-End Product Design: Crypto Exchange App.
CCHAINED - End-to-End Product Design: Crypto Exchange App.
The crypto market, while growing, presents significant UX challenges for new users. The main problem is that most platforms have complex information architecture and feature bloat, which puts a heavy cognitive load on users. This project, CChained, was designed to solve these usability issues by creating a simple and intuitive app for crypto trading and portfolio management. The goal was to build a product with a smooth user journey from start to finish.
The crypto market, while growing, presents significant UX challenges for new users. The main problem is that most platforms have complex information architecture and feature bloat, which puts a heavy cognitive load on users. This project, CChained, was designed to solve these usability issues by creating a simple and intuitive app for crypto trading and portfolio management. The goal was to build a product with a smooth user journey from start to finish.
01
Problem Statement
In a crowded and complex cryptocurrency market, most trading and portfolio management applications fail to deliver a user experience that meets the needs of a diverse user base, particularly those new to the space.
Existing platforms are characterized by cluttered interfaces, complex information architecture, and a high cognitive load. This creates significant friction in core user journeys like buying, selling, and managing a portfolio. As a result, users are often overwhelmed, leading to a high barrier to entry and a fragmented, frustrating experience.
The core problem is to design a solution that simplifies these complex processes, providing a streamlined, intuitive, and secure platform that empowers users to confidently manage their crypto assets without compromising on a professional, data-rich interface.
The crowded cryptocurrency market lacks user-friendly trading and portfolio management applications. Existing platforms are defined by cluttered interfaces and complex information architecture, creating a high cognitive load for new users.
The core challenge is to design a solution that simplifies these complex processes, delivering a streamlined, intuitive, and secure platform. This will empower users to confidently manage their crypto assets while maintaining a professional, data-rich experience.
02
Competitive Analysis & Benchmarking
Competitive Analysis &
Benchmarking
I conducted a competitive analysis and heuristic evaluation of major platforms like Binance, Coinbase, and Kraken. This benchmarking helped find pain points and opportunities for design innovation.
Coinbase wins on simplicity. Its clean UI and easy onboarding flow make it the go-to for beginners. The main downside is higher fees and a limited asset selection, creating a usability-utility trade-off.
Binance is the market leader, with a huge range of features and high liquidity. However, its complex information architecture and cluttered UI lead to a high cognitive load, making it a poor choice for new users.
Kraken is all about security and low fees for experienced traders. Its biggest UX weakness is a dated visual design that doesn't meet modern standards, making it less intuitive.
My project aims to bridge the gap by combining Coinbase's user-friendliness with the utility of a professional platform, solving key pain points across the industry.
I conducted a competitive analysis and heuristic evaluation of major platforms (Binance, Coinbase, and Kraken) to identify key design opportunities and industry friction points.
Coinbase is the model for simplicity and easy onboarding, making it ideal for beginners. However, it sacrifices utility with higher fees and limited asset selection.
Binance is the market leader with high liquidity and a vast feature set, but its complex information architecture and cluttered UI lead to high cognitive load.
Kraken focuses on security and low fees for experienced traders, yet its dated visual design presents a significant UX weakness, making it less intuitive.
My project aims to bridge this gap by combining the user-friendliness of Coinbase with the professional utility of other platforms, thereby solving the industry's main pain points.
03
Key Research Insights
My research, including secondary research of user reviews, showed me a few key things:
Feature Bloat: Too many features lead to high cognitive load, which can cause user errors.
Usability-Utility Trade-off: There's a gap between apps that focus on utility (lots of features) and those that focus on usability (ease of use). CCHAINED app needed to do both.
User Journey: Most apps have a fragmented user journey, which we aimed to fix by keeping everything in one place.
My research, including secondary research of user reviews, showed me a few key things:
Feature Bloat: Too many features lead to high cognitive load, which can cause user errors.
Usability-Utility Trade-off: There's a gap between apps that focus on utility (lots of features) and those that focus on usability (ease of use). CCHAINED app needed to do both.
User Journey: Most apps have a fragmented user journey, which we aimed to fix by keeping everything in one place.
04
Solution & Results
CChained was designed as a direct response to the key user pain points and market gaps identified during my research. My goal was to create a full solution that delivers a superior user experience by prioritizing simplicity, clarity, and transparency. This design approach aimed to not only solve existing problems but also to set a new standard for modern crypto applicatio
CChained was designed as a direct response to the key user pain points and market gaps identified during my research. My goal was to create a full solution that delivers a superior user experience by prioritizing simplicity, clarity, and transparency. This design approach aimed to not only solve existing problems but also to set a new standard for modern crypto applicatio
05
The Unique CCHAINED Aesthetic
The Unique CCHAINED
Aesthetic
The app's interface is both user-friendly and visually appealing. It uses a minimalist aesthetic with a subtle hacker-inspired visual language. This style has a purpose:
Usability and Affordance: The UI design uses visual affordance with clear signifiers and a strong visual hierarchy. The smart use of negative space reduces visual clutter. The dark mode is an accessibility feature with a high-contrast ratio to reduce eye strain.
Brand Identity: The hacker aesthetic gives the app a unique brand identity that connects with the mental models of its tech-savvy audience.
The app's interface is both user-friendly and visually appealing. It uses a minimalist aesthetic with a subtle hacker-inspired visual language. This style has a purpose:
Usability and Affordance: The UI design uses visual affordance with clear signifiers and a strong visual hierarchy. The smart use of negative space reduces visual clutter. The dark mode is an accessibility feature with a high-contrast ratio to reduce eye strain.
Brand Identity: The hacker aesthetic gives the app a unique brand identity that connects with the mental models of its tech-savvy audience.
06
How CCHAINED Is Better?
The final product offers a better experience by solving the weaknesses of other apps:
Simplified Transaction Flow: The trade screen is a task-oriented interface. Its clear CTA (Call to Action) and smooth user flow make it efficient. The "Recents" section also improves discoverability.
Transparent Portfolio: The WALLET screen acts as a clear dashboard, showing key information like total value and PNL. This design provides a complete information scent and is a great UX improvement.
Intuitive Navigation: The global navigation bar is designed for efficiency. By adding WALLET as a navbar item, i gave users quick access to a key feature. Using the same handmade arrow icon for Buy, Sell, Send, and Transfer shows strong design consistency and solves the problem of icon ambiguity.
The final product offers a better experience by solving the weaknesses of other apps:
Simplified Transaction Flow: A task-oriented interface with a clear Call to Action (CTA) ensures efficiency. The "Recents" section boosts discoverability.
Transparent Portfolio: The WALLET screen acts as a clear dashboard, providing total value and PNL (Profit & Loss). This design delivers a complete information scent and better UX.
Intuitive Navigation: Global navigation is efficient. Adding WALLET to the navbar offers quick access. Consistent use of a custom arrow icon for Buy, Sell, Send, and Transfer eliminates icon ambiguity and ensures consistency.
07
Delivery
The project was built using an iterative design process. The Figma high-fidelity prototype shows the final product, which proves that a design-led approach can solve complex UX problems and create a valuable app.
The project was built using an iterative design process. The Figma high-fidelity prototype shows the final product, which proves that a design-led approach can solve complex UX problems and create a valuable app.
