Infinity and beyond

Currently, fixed income markets are complicated, antiquated, and inaccessible. Processes are manual and time-consuming, demanding a great deal of effort.

To solve this issue, US investment banking heavyweights Citi and Bank of America joined forces, together with Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, Moody’s Analytics, Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo to develop and build a multi-dealer trading, data, and analytics platform.

Originally known as ‘Project Octopus’, the Luminous team were welcomed onboard to create a distinct name, narrative, strategy, and visual identity that would reflect the initiative’s importance and vision for the future.

We worked closely with the multi-bank consortium through a series of interviews and workshops to understand the ethos of Project Octopus – what it believes in, what it is here to do, how it can create a positive impact, and how it stands out from the crowd.

Externally, we met with traders and portfolio managers to understand how clients connected with it and what their hopes were for its future. It was clear the project was seen as a force for change and brought a lot of excitement and optimism.

We distilled our insights to unearth and articulate the initiative’s core belief: they are here to ‘evolve the markets.’ After setting out their ethos within their brand platform and story, we explored names that gave expression to this and tied directly into the strategy. Octaura was born. Oct was a nod to the project’s origins and also a symbol of infinity (8) that represented its continual evolution. Aura, reflecting energy and movement, signalled the freshness and optimism it brings.

Our creative team brought Octaura’s strategy and story to life with a visual language that feels sophisticated and innovative and helps the brand stand out within its sector. This was infused across the full brand suite, including a new logo wordmark, brand graphics, colour, typography and iconography.

Finally, we designed and developed their website to tell their story and drive brand building. The website was the first major touchpoint clients would experience. We cannot wait to see the impact Octaura will continue to have as it realises its hopes and ambitions.