In the crypto world, the names of projects and companies often contain many layers of meaning, reflecting their vision, mission and core values. Here are the stories behind the names of some prominent projects in the industry.

Binance

The name of the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange Binance is a combination of the two words "Binary" and "Finance", carrying a deep meaning about the nature and goals of this exchange. "Binary" - the binary system, represents the digital platform of cryptocurrencies with the numbers 0 and 1.

Meanwhile, "Finance" - finance, is the field that Binance is aiming for, a traditional field but revolutionized by blockchain technology.

The name “Binance” is a nod to the exchange’s pioneering position in digital finance, and its commitment to the development and popularization of cryptocurrencies worldwide.

Coinbase

Coinbase, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the United States, takes its name from an important concept in the Bitcoin network, called “coinbase.” This is a special type of transaction that is automatically created at the beginning of each block on the Bitcoin network, allowing miners to receive block rewards. In other words, coinbase transactions are how new BTC are created and put into circulation.

Over the years, Coinbase has established itself as an “entry point” for users to start accessing cryptocurrencies, similar to how “coinbase” transactions are the first step for new Bitcoins to be created. The name is not just a brand, but also reflects the mission of increasing the popularity of cryptocurrencies globally.

Polygon (Old Matic)

Before becoming Polygon, this Layer 2 was known as Matic, launched in 2017, the name Matic reflected the efforts in scaling Ethereum with Plasma technology that was popular at that time.

However, with a longer-term vision, the development team decided to aim to build a multi-chain ecosystem, compatible with Ethereum and decided to change the name to "Polygon" in February 2021.

In geometry, "polygon" means a polygon with many sides and corners, symbolizing the diversity and scalability of the project by connecting many layer-2s together. Co-founder Sandeep Nailwal said

"The company changed its name to Polygon in 2021 with the new name reflecting the ambition to become the 'Internet of Blockchain', like a geometric polygon with many sides representing many layer-2s connected together."

Scroll

A Layer 2 (L2) solution on Ethereum, Scroll is named for three main reasons:

• Reference to ancient scrolls: reminiscent of ancient scrolls, such as papyrus, used in ancient Egypt. These scrolls were often rolled up for safekeeping and used to record information, similar to the “roll-up” mechanism in blockchain technology, where multiple transactions are bundled into one for more efficient processing

• SCaling with a ROLLup and Smart Contract ROLLup: The name comes from the phrases “SCaling with a ROLLup” and “Smart Contract ROLLup,” reflecting the project’s core mission of extending Ethereum beyond the current limitations of the EVM, while building developer- and user-friendly tools.

• Smooth User Experience: Ultimately, the development team wants the end-user experience to be like scrolling on a phone, i.e. simple and intuitive, so that users don't have to worry about entering the crypto world.

TRON

When naming his blockchain, Justin Sun was inspired by the 1982 sci-fi film TRON. The film tells the story of a programmer who is drawn into the digital world, where he must confront a tyrannical computer system to regain his freedom. The theme of fighting against centralized control in the film reflects the decentralized philosophy of blockchain technology. Sun shared that this is one of the core principles of TRON.

TRON was founded in 2017 with the goal of building a decentralized ecosystem for sharing digital content, eliminating dependence on centralized platforms such as YouTube or the Apple Store. In this way, TRON hopes to give control of content directly to creators and consumers, in line with the spirit of freedom and decentralization conveyed by the film "TRON".

The choice of the name TRON not only honors the classic film, but also emphasizes Justin Sun's commitment to promoting a decentralized internet environment where power is distributed and users have full control over their data.

Solana

The name Solana was inspired by Solana Beach in California, USA. Solana founder Anatoly Yakovenko used to work at Qualcomm, a company headquartered near Solana Beach. When developing the new blockchain project, he and his team chose the name "Solana" to honor this location, where they had many memorable memories and experiences.

The choice of the name "Solana" is not only geographical, but also the word Sol in Spanish means sun, symbolizing the transparency and efficiency that this blockchain aims for.

Dragonfly Capital

Dragonfly Capital is the name of a venture capital fund focused on the cryptocurrency sector. According to co-founder Haseeb Qureshi, the name "Dragonfly" was inspired by the poem "A Small Pond" by Yang Wanli, a famous poet of the Song Dynasty.

In the poem, the image of a dragonfly first appears in spring, symbolizing new beginnings and renewal. Qureshi associated this with cryptocurrencies, considering it the spring of a new social movement, and thus named the fund Dragonfly Capital.

This name reflects Dragonfly Capital's philosophy of pioneering and promoting innovation in the cryptocurrency field.

Andreessen Horowitz (a16z)

Andreessen Horowitz, often abbreviated as a16z, is a leading venture capital firm in Silicon Valley, California. Founded in 2009 by Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz, the name "Andreessen Horowitz" is a combination of the last names of the two founders of this investment fund.

The name a16z is an acronym for the fund, created by taking the initial "a" and the final "z" of the Andreessen Horowitz acronym with the number 16 representing the number of letters between them.

Delphi Digital

Delphi Digital, a crypto research and investment firm, was inspired by the Oracle of Delphi nickname of the priestess Pythia in Greek mythology.

According to legend, she worked at the temple of Apollo in Delphi. The ancient Greeks and many from neighboring regions often sought out Pythia for prophecy and guidance, believing that her advice was divinely inspired.

Co-founder Anil Lulla shared that they chose the name Delphi Digital with the desire to become a source of information, forecasts, and guidance in the cryptocurrency space. Just as the Oracle of Delphi was a source of knowledge in ancient times, Delphi Digital wants to represent a modern source of knowledge and innovation in the cryptocurrency space.

Sui

Sui is a Layer 1 blockchain designed to provide low latency scalability, achieved through parallel processing of transactions. The name “Sui” is inspired by Japanese philosophy, where Sui means water.

This represents smoothness and fluidity in transactions, characteristics that the project aspires to embody as a high-speed and low-cost Layer-1.

Aave

The name Aave comes from the Finnish word for “ghost” or “phantom”. The project was originally founded in 2017 under the name ETHLend, focusing on connecting borrowers and lenders in a peer-to-peer (P2P) model on Ethereum.

However, to expand its scope of operations and provide more diverse financial services, the project was renamed Aave in September 2018.

The name “Aave” also symbolizes the decentralized and anonymous nature of the protocol, where users can borrow and lend cryptocurrencies without revealing their identities, similar to the mystery of ghosts.