Huma Finance User Engagement
Designed and launched three core features for Huma, the first PayFi network with $5.7B+ in total transaction: Rewards Calculator, HUMA Badges, and Huma Anytime, which drove higher user engagement.
Company
Huma Finance
Role
Product Design Intern
Timeline
June - August 2025
Team
Me (Design)
Erbil (Co-founder)
Li (Design Lead)
Shan & Michael (Engineers)
At a Glance
Project Overview
Huma Finance (HUMA) is the first PayFi Network, leverages blockchain and stablecoin to accelerate global payment settlement. With over $5.7B on-chain transactions, it stands as one of the most successful real world applications of stablecoins..
As a product design intern, I designed engaging features such as badges and a rewards calculator that align business goals with user needs by rewarding loyal users and attracting new users. My designs are loved by tens of thousands of users on X and help Huma further foster community growth.
My Contributions
Designed and launched a badge system and a rewards calculator that enhance user motivation and strengthen community, now actively used by 10K+ in Huma’s growing PayFi ecosystem.
Developed Huma Anytime interfaces for seamless PST and USDC swaps via Jupiter, expanding liquidity and connecting Huma to the broader crypto ecosystem.
Collaborated company-wide with Huma’s CEO, design mentor, and developers to deliver designs that aligned with business goals and enabled smooth technical implementation through clear communication and iterative teamwork.
Context
How Huma Drives Loyalty and Participation?
A core part of what drives Huma is its love for its community and its commitment to giving back. Huma 2.0 opens high-quality DeFi earnings to everyone, not just large investors.
At the center is Huma Feathers, a reward system that keeps users engaged while also supporting Huma’s goals for growth and retention. Users choose between two tokens: PST (Classic Mode) for consistent income plus rewards, or mPST (Maxi Mode) for maximum rewards. They can switch at any time to match their strategy, and locking tokens for 3 or 6 months boosts rewards further.
This encourages long-term participation while keeping funds accessible after the lockup period. This community-first, incentive-driven model shaped my design approach for creating product solutions that keep Huma’s PayFi ecosystem exciting, user-friendly, and innovative.
In Huma’s PayFi ecosystem, badges like the Anchor (the newest), Vanguard, and OG LP visually recognize and reward users’ early belief, long-term loyalty, and commitment, fueling pride and strengthening community bonds. Each badge recognizes a unique aspect of user commitment and participation with Huma’s product.
I designed all three badges, ensuring each had clear, symbolic visuals that aligned with Huma’s brand, allowing users on X to proudly showcase their dedication. Additionally, I designed the badge display layout to prominently and intuitively celebrate users, creating an experience that makes them feel valued and inspired to continue engaging. This visual strategy supports both user satisfaction and business goals by fostering a loyal, active community.
OG Badge
Awarded to the earliest supporters who deposited into Huma Institutional and maintained $100 liquidity before April 1, 2025. Designed as a diamond shape to symbolize rarity and value, featuring an egg shape with "OG" inside to represent original, early belief and new beginnings.
Vanguard Badge
Awarded to users who purchase and stake at least 100,000 $HUMA tokens by June 15, 2025, maintain staking for 6 months, and continue to stake either their airdrop or at least 10,000 $HUMA. The badge features a bold circular design with a sword and shield, symbolizing protection, strength, and the vanguard’s role as loyal defenders of the Huma community.
Anchor Badge
The newest badge, awarded to users who lock funds for two consecutive 6-month periods, rewarding the most dedicated long-term Huma yield supporters. Designed as a circular badge featuring an anchor icon, symbolizing stability, reliability, and commitment at the core of Huma’s community.
Badge Display Design
I designed the badge display layout to clearly communicate users’ earned and expected badges, showcasing proud achievements and simplifying progress tracking to boost user motivation. Its flexible, scalable structure allows seamless addition of new badges like the Anchor Badge, aligning with Huma’s goal to sustain community engagement and reward loyalty without compromising the user experience.
Feedback: Clearer Badge Expiration Communication
Users loved their badges but found it difficult to tell when badges were expiring or had expired. They also wanted clear options to take action as badges near expiration or to re-earn badges once expired. Improving visual indicators and adding CTAs were important for transparent design and to boost engagement.
Design Iteration
I implemented user feedback by adding color-coded chips, yellow for expiring badges and red for expired or inactive ones, to provide clear, at-a-glance status indicators. I also introduced call-to-action buttons with concise instructions, enabling users to easily maintain or reclaim badge status. These updates were designed to integrate seamlessly without disrupting the overall user experience.
Reactions According to Users (from X)
Huma Rewards Calculator: Empowering Users to Maximize Feathers
I also designed the Rewards Calculator, used by thousands of Huma users and loved for reflecting Huma’s commitment to transparency. Huma users care deeply about Feathers, the loyalty rewards that reflect engagement with the Huma Protocol. The more you deposit and the longer you lock funds, the more Feathers you collect. Since multiple factors such as Classic or Maxi Mode, lockup durations, and badge status determine the amount of Feathers earned, the Rewards Calculator helps users understand the effects of their decisions, empowering them to maximize rewards and align their strategy with long-term goals.
I designed the Rewards Calculator with a focus on clean, consistent, and intuitive user experience. Inputs for PST, mPST, $HUMA staking, lockup durations, and active badges are organized into clear sections, helping users quickly understand each factor. Calculated rewards appear in real time at the top, providing immediate feedback and reinforcing transparency, with the most important information displayed clearly and boldly. Chip-style selectors display lockup options and badge selections clearly and make interactions effortless, reducing cognitive load and supporting a smooth, predictable experience throughout the interface.
Feedback: Design for Large-Number Edge Cases
During development, we noticed display issues when users entered very large amounts in the millions, billions, or trillions. However, since it is a calculator, we need to display the most precise results possible. As a designer, it was important to consider these edge case to ensure clarity and accuracy.
Design Iteration
I implemented this feedback by consolidating numbers into ‘B’ for billions and ‘T’ for trillions, but kept millions displayed in full to ensure results remain clear, precise, and easily understandable for users.
Reactions According to Users (from X)
Huma Anytime: Designing Towards A Business Move
Finally, I designed the interface for one of Huma's newest business initiatives: the Huma Anytime. which simplifies swapping USDC for PST directly within the Huma app, removing the need for external platforms like Jupiter, a decentralized exchange aggregator. Swaps use Huma liquidity first (0% fee) and default to Jupiter if needed (0.05% fee), with plans to integrate other platforms like Kamino in the future. The design goal was to transparently display PST sources, pricing, and slippage fees without disrupting the UI, communicating all of this in a visually minimal yet clear way.
I designed the Huma Anytime product interface with a pill-shaped chip to indicate whether a swap is done through Huma or Jupiter in a compact, scannable way. Fees are shown directly next to the pill for clarity and transparency, while a tooltip provides additional context without overloading the UI. These choices create an intuitive, informative, and visually clean user experience.
Feedback: Communicate Edge Case Messaging
With products like the Huma Anytime that rely on liquidity pools, edge cases can arise when there isn’t enough liquidity to fulfill a user’s quote or when slippage exceeds predefined thresholds. Designing clear messaging for these scenarios ensures users have accurate expectations, improves trust, and helps the product handle transactions reliably.
Design Iteration
I implemented this feedback by integrating several edge case error messages to provide transparency in my designs. For example, if slippage is too high or there isn’t enough liquidity in the secondary market, the message clearly states the issue and guides the user to resolve it, such as entering a smaller deposit amount.
Impact
Engaged with HUMA Badges & Rewards Calculator
Growth within 3 months after launching Huma Anytime
Final Designs
Final Takeaways
Key Takeaway 1: Design Products for Lasting Community Engagement
At Huma, I learned to turn community-building strategies into product experiences that benefit both users and the business. I designed loyalty badges that inspired pride and recognition while driving long-term retention, showing how thoughtful design strengthens user connection and supports sustainable growth. This reinforced that caring for and closely observing the community is core to being a good product designer.
Key Takeaway 2: Minimal Design Solutions for Maximum Clarity
I learned that the most effective solutions are often the simplest. Clean and subtle design choices like space efficient chips, clean layouts, and subtle visual indicators for badges create the clearest and most transparent user experiences. At Huma, this approach helped me avoid overcomplicating the interface with distracting details, turning complex crypto information into an experience that felt effortless and intuitive for users.
Key Takeaway 3: Anticipating the Unexpected Edge Cases
Good design goes beyond the typical, expected user path. At Huma, I designed error and edge case messaging for scenarios like high slippage, insufficient liquidity, or oversized deposits. These solutions gave users clarity and guidance in uncertain situations, building trust while making the product more resilient. I now apply this by anticipating potential issues and designing clear, easy-to-follow guidance for users
Contact Me!
janetjliu
janetliu.ca@gmail.com
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