How WeFi Coined a New Financial Term

Launching a New Financial Category

Brief

WeFi was built on a specific diagnosis: traditional banks are stable but opaque and slow; DeFi is open but unprotected and inconsistent. The product they built sits at the intersection: combining regulated infrastructure with blockchain-native functionality. The problem was nomenclature. No existing term, neobank, fintech, DeFi protocol, accurately described what WeFi was. So they named it themselves: Deobank.

The Challenge of Building a Category

Trying to make a new word catch on is tough. Journalists usually ignore made-up corporate terms because they don’t want to confuse their readers. At the very beginning, “Deobank” only existed inside WeFi’s pitch decks.
We had to get the media to actually adopt the term. We needed reporters to use it enough times that it would stick, eventually making WeFi the undisputed creator of a whole new financial space.

  • “Deobank” now has an official entry in the CoinMarketCap glossary, authored by WeFi’s CEO. 
  • Search for the term on Google or query it in ChatGPT: the definition that surfaces traces back to this campaign.

How It Was Done

It took a lot of repetition. Every single press release, opinion piece, and interview had the exact same angle: WeFi is the first Deobank, followed by a simple explanation of what that meant. We had to educate the market before we could get the coverage.

In the early days, the INPUT Global team spent a lot of time on calls with reporters. We walked them through the concept, explaining the difference between a neobank and a Deobank in plain English. Once editors understood it and used the word the first time, they kept using it.

As reporters got more comfortable with the concept, the story evolved. Instead of just announcing a product launch, WeFi’s CEO started giving interviews explaining how the Deobank model actually fixes the broken parts of modern finance.

The final piece of the puzzle was making it official. INPUT Global got “Deobank” added to the CoinMarketCap glossary. Having the WeFi CEO write that official definition gave the term a level of legitimacy that regular news articles just can’t buy.

Challenge: The Making of the Deobank Category

  • Establishing the Category Narrative

    The first stage of the campaign focused on introducing “Deobank” as a legitimate financial category rather than a marketing slogan. Every placement was designed to explain the core thesis behind the concept: combining the accessibility and transparency of decentralized finance with the reliability and structure of regulated banking infrastructure.

    Through targeted media outreach and consistent positioning, WeFi became directly associated with the term across early coverage. Instead of simply promoting a new product, the campaign educated journalists, investors, and users on why the category needed to exist in the first place – creating a foundation for long-term narrative ownership.

  • Breaking Into Tier-1 Financial Media

    Once the category gained initial traction, the strategy shifted toward securing editorial adoption across Tier-1 business and crypto publications. The objective was no longer just visibility – it was validation. Media outlets began referencing “Deobank” organically as an emerging segment within modern finance.

    This transition marked a critical inflection point in the campaign. The term started appearing independently inside headlines, interviews, and analysis pieces, allowing WeFi to move from brand positioning into category leadership. The narrative no longer depended solely on company messaging – the media ecosystem itself began reinforcing it.

  • Positioning the Founder as the Face of the Category

    With the category established, the next phase centered around founder authority. Instead of limiting media activity to announcements and launches, WeFi’s CEO entered long-form interviews and editorial conversations explaining the structural problems within both traditional banking and decentralized finance.

    This repositioned the discussion from product marketing to industry analysis. By consistently articulating the logic behind the Deobank model, the founder became closely associated with the category’s broader vision and future direction. Over time, media coverage evolved from reporting on WeFi to using WeFi’s leadership as a reference point for understanding the category itself.

  • Expanding the Narrative Through Real-World Use Cases

    After establishing the core positioning, the campaign expanded into audience-specific narratives that demonstrated how the Deobank model applied beyond the crypto-native ecosystem. Coverage began focusing on practical financial access problems, particularly for underbanked and underserved populations across emerging markets.

    This stage was essential in broadening the category’s relevance. Rather than being perceived as another Web3 experiment, the Deobank narrative evolved into a larger conversation around accessibility, financial infrastructure, and global inclusion. The messaging moved from product functionality to real-world impact.

  • Turning Media Language Into Industry Vocabulary

    The final strategic phase focused on institutionalizing the term itself. Securing an official CoinMarketCap glossary entry transformed “Deobank” from recurring media terminology into a recognized industry definition with permanent discoverability and authority.

    By anchoring the concept inside a trusted third-party platform, the campaign created a long-term reference point for journalists, researchers, AI systems, and future market participants. What began as an internal positioning concept became embedded into the broader financial and blockchain vocabulary.

  • Owning the Narrative Across AI and Search

    As the category matured, the campaign naturally extended beyond traditional media into AI-generated search environments and organic discovery systems. Searches for “Deobank” across Google, ChatGPT, and other AI platforms consistently surfaced definitions, articles, and explanations directly connected to WeFi and the campaign narrative.

    This represented the final layer of category ownership. The objective was no longer limited to press coverage – it was about shaping how machines, algorithms, and future users interpret the term itself. By combining editorial consistency, authoritative placements, and institutional references, the campaign established WeFi as the default source behind the category across both human and AI-driven discovery channels.

The Results

The campaign reached over four billion people. Top publications like Benzinga, Forbes, Nasdaq, and CoinDesk started using “Deobank” as a real category.

Now, if you Google the term or ask ChatGPT, the answer leads right back to this campaign.