Overview

The Messari Classification System is meant to be a common global classification standard similar to GICS in traditional finance. This classification standard is applied to any crypto market participant to group entities into common sectors, industry groups, and industries.

The Messari Classification System is composed of 4 main layers of classifications.

Entity Type

A Messari entity can be of any of the below types. A given project may have multiple entities of different types. Uniswap for example has several protocols, a native asset, and multiple organizations & governing bodies. Note that exchanges can either be Organizations (Coinbase) or Protocols (Uniswap V3)

Asset (e.g ETH)
Protocol (e.g Uniswap V3)
Organization (e.g Messari, INC)
Network (e.g Ethereum Network)
Governing Body (e.g Uniswap DAO)
Product (e.g Coinbase Cloud)

At the moment, our classification is only applied to Assets but will be extended to other types of entities in the near future, providing a single taxonomy for the entire industry.

Categories

Categories are high-level groups used to classify crypto market participants. They are common across all entity types. Each category is composed of multiple sectors. There are 25 categories in total. Each entity can only belong to a single category.

Sectors

Sectors are more granular groups used to classify crypto market participants. They are common across all entity types. Each sector has a unique parent category. There are 91 sectors in total. Each entity can only belong to a single sector. For entities that may fit into multiple sectors, we apply the sector that is best suited based on the primary business model, revenue source or application.

Tags

Tags are free-form ways to classify further different entities. An entity may have multiple tags, although it can only have a single sector and taxonomy.

Categories	Underlying Sectors	Definition
Marketplaces	Exchange; Lending; Aggregator; Prediction; Launchpad and Crowdfunding; Fixed Income; Derivatives	Platforms that facilitate the coordination between buyers and sellers.
Financial Services	Banking; Insurance; Yield Services; Custody; Payments; Market Making	An aggregator of offerings provided to individuals and businesses regarding financial transactions.
Investment Management	Venture Capital; Private Equity; Hedge Funds; Asset Managers; Asset Owners; Corporates	Firms that deploy and allocate capital in markets to earn a return on their capital invested.
Metaverse and Gaming	Metaverse; Gaming	Applications, protocols, and entities that facilitate 2D, 3D, or augmented reality virtual experiences including virtual worlds and gaming.
Entertainment	Art; Collectibles and Digital Goods; Fashion; Sports; Music	Services and items that are considered non-essential and are consumed for pleasure.
News and Information	News; Education; Information Services	Protocols and Services which serve to distribute knowledge, information, and fact-based resources.
Consumer Infrastructure	Social Tokens; Identity, Reputation, and Credentialing; Social Media; Communication and Messaging	Applications and services that are primarily distributed and sold by retailers to individuals.
Cryptocurrency	Currency; Stablecoins	Globally accessible money that is not necessarily use case specific.
Synthetic Assets	Wrapped Asset, Real-world assets; Collateral Assets; Liquid Staking Tokens; Securities; Indexes; ETFs	Tokens and assets that are developed on top of an underlying asset and represented onchain.
Mining and Validation	Mining Operations and Support; Validator Operations and Support; Liquid Staking	Onchain and Ocffchain entities that facilitate or support the Mining and Validation of cryptocurrency networks.
Cross-chain Interoperability	Generalized Bridge	Protocols that facilitate the transfer of messages (data) between independent blockchains and protocols.
Node Tooling	Hosting; Client	A node is a device that connects to a blockchain network by running the client software. Nodes verify the validity of state transitions and store transaction history.
Security	Audits; Security Monitoring	Services, Protocols, and applications developed to secure assets and protocols.
Wallet	Wallet	An application that controls access to their funds by managing keys and addresses, tracking balances, and creating and signing transactions
Data	Analytics; Indexing; Oracles	Protocols, Services, and Companies focused on the extraction, distribution, or curation of information of data from blockchain networks or on top of blockchain networks.
Governance	Governance Frameworks; Dispute Resolution; Metagovernance	Protocols, onchain, and offchain, which determine the coordination of changes are made to the rules of a protocol and the decisions of a DAO
Networks	Smart Contract Platforms (Layer-1); Layer-0; Scaling Solutions; Other	Protocols or blockchains that either provide settlement, act as a base layer infrastructure for the creation of networks on top of themselves, or provide security and scaling solutions built on themselves.
Compute Networks	General Compute; Machine Learning; Streaming and Rendering	Services, protocols, and applications that provide access to both general-purpose and specific-purpose computing resources.
Physical Infrastructure Networks	Energy Networks; Wireless and Sensor Networks; File Storage; Database	Platforms, protocols, or services that enable communication and interaction between different hardware components and leverage physical infrastructure.
Networking and Web Services	Cloud Platforms; Content Delivery Network (CDN); Virtual Private Networks (VPNs); Domain Name System (DNS)	Platforms, protocols, or services that enable communication and interaction between different hardware and software components.
Developer Tooling	Automation; Developer Tooling	Tooling developed to support the development and implementation of applications, protocols, and networks
HR & Community Tools	Onboarding; Moderation; Access Control; Contribution and Compensation	Platforms and services designed to support the needs of groups working together
Consultancy and Advisory	Design Services; Legal Services; Tax Services; Incubators and Accelerators; Marketing Services; Software Development Services; Protocol and Governance Services	A group or person that can be engaged to provide insight, analysis, or advice on their areas of expertise.

Sectors

Sector	Parent Category	Definition
Exchange	Marketplaces	A platform that facilitates the trading of assets, including crypto assets.
Lending	Marketplaces	A platform that facilitates the lending or borrowing of crypto assets.
Aggregator	Marketplaces	A platform that routes optimal financial transactions including trades and yields across external platforms including exchanges.
Prediction	Marketplaces	A platform that allows users to stake an item or monetary value on the outcome of an event.
Launchpad and Crowdfunding	Marketplaces	A platform that facilitates the collection of capital to fund a business or initiative, which may result in shareholders receiving equity, crypto assets, or some other financial instrument.
Banking	Financial Services	An aggregator of financial services offered by a banking institution.
Insurance	Financial Services	A service offered by a government, corporation, or protocol that provides a guarantee of compensation in specific scenarios such as theft, hacks, or other exogenous factors.
Yield Services	Financial Services	A service offered by an entity or protocol that focuses on providing or increasing yield on assets through various strategies such as liquidity provision or staking.
Custody	Financial Services	A platform or service which holds and secures assets on behalf of users.
Payments	Financial Services	Platform developed to facilitate payments within a specific usecase or industry.
Market Making	Financial Services	An entity that provides liquidity to financial markets through buying and selling assets.
Indexes	Synthetic Assets	An entity or platform that facilitates the creation of baskets of assets grouped together by a predefined composition and methodology.
ETFs	Synthetic Assets	Exchange Traded Fund.
Fixed Income	Marketplaces	A financial instrument that is a loan between a lender and borrower and provides fixed income to the creditor.
Derivatives	Marketplaces	A financial instrument which is created from an underlying asset and derives its value from it.
Securities	Synthetic Assets	A financial instrument created to raise capital for an entity.
Venture Capital	Investment Management	An investment firm that invests in early-stage startups and entrepreneurs with high growth potential.
Private Equity	Investment Management	An investment management firm that invests in the equity of private companies. In addition to funding, a private equity firm provides operational and industry guidance to improve the performance of the company it invested in.
Hedge Funds	Investment Management	A private alternative investment vehicle that pools funds from accredited investors to invest in complex trading strategies to generate outsized returns.
Asset Managers	Investment Management	Firms that offer investment management services including mutual funds, and wealth management.
Asset Owners	Investment Management	Firms tasked with owning the underlying assets they manage including pension funds, insurance funds, family offices, endowments, and sovereign wealth funds.
Corporates	Investment Management	Refers to a corporation's treasury management entities and activities.
Metaverse	Metaverse and Gaming	Refers to immersive and virtual 2D or 3D worlds where users can congregate and interact with one other online.
Gaming	Metaverse and Gaming	Entities that create games or are games themselves, and can include games that leverage blockchain and cryptoassets to give players unique incentives, ownership, or experiences with games.
Art	Entertainment	Physical or digital creations that are interpreted as creative or convey a sense of meaning.
Collectibles and Digital Goods	Entertainment	Physical or non-physical items or tokens that provide the holder unique ownership of digital or real-world items.
Fashion	Entertainment	Physical or digital clothing ware designed to have some sort of artistic quality.
Sports	Entertainment	Includes sports games, events, merchandise, and equipment of professional and amateur sports leagues.
Music	Entertainment	Entities or protocols that facilitate the creation, distribution, or sale of music.
News	News and Information	The reporting or announcement of recent information that is deemed relevant or important.
Education	News and Information	Entities and Services that provide resources and instruction on knowledge-based subjects.
Information Services	News and Information	Services that facilitate the distribution of knowledge and knowledge-based resources.
Social Tokens	Consumer Infrastructure	Tokens issued by individuals, communities, or platforms that provide the token holder unique benefits or access to holders, including status, potential financial reward, or Governance rights of a DAO.
Identity, Reputation, and Credentialing	Consumer Infrastructure	Protocols that provide unique digital identities or link immutable records of identification to the digital world.
Social Media	Consumer Infrastructure	Protocols and applications that facilitate the exchange of information and creation of and distribution of content between users through the internet or blockchain-based technology.
Communication and Messaging	Consumer Infrastructure	A platform that allows members to share, discuss, and communicate. It can be a forum, messaging application, or social network focused on discussion.
Currency	Cryptocurrency	Globally accessible money that is not necessarily use-case-specific
Stablecoins	Cryptocurrency	A cryptocurrency pegged to another asset or underlying currency such as the US dollar or the Euro. Stablecoins can be fully collateralized, partially collateralized, or algorithmic. Popular stablecoins include USDT, USDC, DAI, and formerly UST.
Wrapped Assets	Synthetic Assets	Wrapped tokens are cryptocurrency tokens representing another crypto asset's value that has been locked in storage. The original crypto asset gets locked so that a representative can get created in a wrapped form for its use on a noncompatible blockchain or dApp. For instance, Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC) for use on the Ethereum network and Wrapped Ethereum (WETH) across dApps.
Real World Assets	Synthetic Assets	Physical assets that are tokenized onchain to denote virtual ownership.
Collateral Asset	Synthetic Assets	A token in which the underlying asset is deposited into a lending platform or lending contract.
Liquid Staking Tokens	Synthetic Assets	Tokens in which the underlying asset is a locked or illiquid token deposited into a staking contract. A liquid staking asset is a transferable, yield-bearing representation of the deposited assets.
Mining Operations and Support	Mining and Validation	Onchain and offchain entities that facilitate or support miners and mining operations of a cryptocurrency network.
Validator Operations and Support	Mining and Validation	Onchain and offchain entities that facilitate or support validators and validator operations of cryptocurrency networks
Liquid Staking	Mining and Validation	Liquid staking is a mechanism designed to give stakers a transferable, yield-bearing representation of their deposited assets. With liquid staking, users can earn a yield on top of their staked tokens or trade their staked position in available markets.
Generalized Bridge	Cross-chain Interoperability	A bridge is a series of smart contracts that connect one or more blockchains together to enable the movement of assets across different networks.
Hosting	Node Tooling	A protocol that facilitates and executes remote client requests on networks. Transactions from users on blockchains are routed through RPC nodes, and RPC calls allow for blockchain data to be queried.
Client	Node Tooling	A software implementation of a specific blockchain and every node on the network runs client software. Public blockchains can have one or many clients that interface with one another to create a distributed, peer-to-peer network.
Audits	Security	A service that analyzes smart contracts and related data to identify and remedy potential vulnerabilities or unexpected interactions of a code base.
Security Monitoring	Security	A protocol or service that provides real-time monitoring of protocols and contracts to identify potentially malicious transactions or unexpected code interactions.
Wallet	Wallet	A digital tool that securely stores private keys and allows users to manage, send, and receive various cryptocurrencies on a blockchain network.
Analytics	Data	Protocols or services which provide insights and analysis on data from networks and applications.
Indexing	Data	Protocols and services that extract data from blockchains for generalized or specific use cases.
Oracles	Data	Protocols that verify claims regarding external, on-chain, or off-chain data and information for smart contracts to obtain the inputs needed to execute their instructions.
Governance Frameworks	Governance	A system used to manage blockchain-based upgrades and changes. These rules include specifying who can update protocol parameters.
Dispute Resolution	Governance	A platform or service designed to solve conflicts and or claims between two parties.
Metagovernance	Governance	Metagovernance occurs when a DAO holds voting power in other DAOs through possession of the other DAO’s governance tokens. Some protocols focus on & facilitate metagovernance.
Smart Contract Platforms (Layer-1)	Networks	A Layer-1 blockchain refers to generalized smart contract networks that provide security for applications and scaling solutions built on top of the network.
Layer-0	Networks	Cosmos and Polkadot are the go-to examples of Layer 0 blockchains. Layer 0 blockchains are meant to provide the underlying infrastructure to facilitate the creation of blockchains and also allow cross-chain interoperability.
Scaling Solutions	Networks	Protocols designed to increase the transaction throughput of a blockchain while inheriting security properties of the underlying network.
Other	Networks	Protocols that do not support general-purpose computing, data availability, or consensus services. Modular settlement layers that solely handle the validation of state transitions via fraud or validity proofs would be considered under this classification.
General Compute	Compute Networks	A platform or service that provides an array of computation, networking, file storage, or other services, such as a cloud provider.
Machine Learning	Compute Networks	Networks dedicated to providing computational requirements and/or supporting the secondary infrastructure requirements associated with machine learning.
Streaming and Rendering	Compute Networks	Services that offer computational resources for transcoding and streaming video such as Livepeer.
Energy Networks	Physical Infrastructure Networks	Networks that aggregate distributed energy resources, including energy generation and storage units, to create a more resilient and efficient energy grid.
Wireless and Sensor Networks	Physical Infrastructure Networks	Networks that allow the transmission of data through radio frequencies, including but not limited to IoT, cellular, Bluetooth, and WiFi, or networks of interconnected devices with sensors that collect real-time data from the physical world and transmit it to a gateway for processing.
File Storage	Physical Infrastructure Networks	A platform or protocol designed for long-term, immutable file storage, such as Arweave and Filecoin.
Database	Physical Infrastructure Networks	A platform or protocol designed for the temporary storage of data that may need to be updated more frequently than data stored on a permanent storage service.
Cloud Platforms	Networking and Web Services	Platforms that aggregate and provide on-demand access to computing resources.
Content Delivery Network (CDN)	Networking and Web Services	A distributed network of nodes that provide fast and efficient delivery of content and apps.
Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)	Networking and Web Services	Networks or services that focus on secure, encrypted data transmission over public networks through privacy-focused obfuscation.
Domain Name System	Networking and Web Services	A naming system that translates domain names into Internet Protocol (IP) addresses that are used to communicate over the Internet.
Automation	Developer Tooling	Tooling created to automate workflows or execute code, including artificial intelligence and machine learning
Developer Tooling	Developer Tooling	Tooling developed to support and aid developers or the development cycle of applications, protocols, and networks
Onboarding	HR & Community Tools	A platform or tool designed to induct new users or employees into groups or communities.
Moderation	HR & Community Tools	A tool or service which allows for the enforcement of standards and rules in communication channels.
Access Control	HR & Community Tools	A service or tool developed to facilitate subscription or credential-based participation in a group or community.
Contribution and Compensation	HR & Community Tools	A service or tool that allows for the accounting of work or effort done by community members and the facilitation of compensation of community members.
Design Services	Consultancy and Advisory	Services focused on design elements of a website or protocol, including but not limited to product design, graphic design, web design, and iconography.
Legal Services	Consultancy and Advisory	Services focused on legal or legal advisory.
Tax Services	Consultancy and Advisory	Services provided by an external agent to provide analysis and recommendations on activities in regard to their tax implications or mitigations.
Incubators and Accelerators	Consultancy and Advisory	Service or Entity that provides services to early-stage companies to aid in bootstrapping and launching a project or protocol, in some cases in return for equity or tokens from the project accelerated/incubated.
Marketing Services	Consultancy and Advisory	Services provided by an external agent to support the creation of a brand, create marketing collateral, or act on behalf of an entity to promote an application, protocol, or entity.
Software Development Services	Consultancy and Advisory	Services provided by an external agent to support the development of software for an application, protocol, or network.
Protocol and Governance Services	Consultancy and Advisory	Advisory or technical services provided to a protocol or DAO including governance recommendations, risk analysis, and monitoring.

Tags

Tags are free-form ways to further classify different entities. An entity may have multiple tags, although it can only have a single sector and taxonomy.

Tag	Definition
A.I.	A protocol or application that utilizes Artificial Intelligence technology for a specific use-case.
Application Specific Chain	A blockchain built for a specific use case or application. Application-specific chains are not intended for general-purpose use and instead are tailored to a specific application to optimize performance, improve security, and create a better user experience for the intended use case.
Automated Market Maker (AMM)	An Automated Market Maker (AMM) is a type of decentralized exchange protocol that pools user funds and utilizes mathematical formulas to price assets without an order book.
CDP	A Collateralized Debt Position (CDP) is a system where users deposit an asset as collateral to borrow another asset, which the user must repay along with interest to return their collateral.
Centralized Exchange	A platform operated by a central authority that facilitates the trading of cryptoassets custodied on the platform.
Centralized Issuer	A centralized issuer is an entity that has control over the creation and distribution of a particular cryptoasset.
Contentious Fork	A blockchain that splits from its original network due to a community disagreeing on the fundamental aspects of the chain's protocols or rules.
Cosmos SDK	A blockchain built with the Cosmos SDK that is compatible with the IBC protocol.
Curve Finance Ecosystem	Protocols or assets that leverage the Curve stableswap protocol.
DAO	A Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) is a blockchain-based organization governed by smart contracts and token holders, with voting rights typically, but not always, proportional to the number of tokens a member holds.
Decentralized Exchange	A platform for the trading of cryptoassets without a centralized intermediary.
Decentralized Exchange Aggregator	A platform that sources liquidity from various decentralized exchanges to provide users with the most optimal trading rates and slippage.
Decentralized Issuer	A protocol that autonomously manages the issuance of a cryptocurrency without a centralized entity.
Decentralized Lender	A platform or protocol that enables users to lend and borrow cryptocurrencies without centralized intermediaries.
DeFi	Protocols that make financial products available to users on decentralized networks.
DePIN	Decentralized physical infrastructure networks (DePINs) use token rewards to incentivize the deployment of hardware-based networks and the completion of real-world tasks.
Derivatives	A platform that facilitates the creation or trading of financial contracts that derive their value from the performance of underlying cryptoassets.
Enterprise Services	Blockchain-based solutions and services specifically designed to meet the needs of large organizations in areas such as infrastructure, smart contract development, data analytics, compliance, etc.
Ethereum Layer-2	A secondary architecture or protocol specifically designed to increase transaction speed and scalability while deriving some or all of its security or decentralization properties of Ethereum. Rollups, validiums, and volitions can all be considered Layer-2 projects.
Ethereum Liquid Staking Asset	A token that represents staked Ether in the Ethereum Proof-of-Stake network to provide liquidity for staked ETH.
Euro Stablecoin	A cryptoasset designed to trade at the same price as the Euro.
EVM	A blockchain network that is compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM).
Fan Token	A cryptoasset that provides benefits to fans of a sports team, music artist, or other entity with exclusive content or merchandise.
Governance Token	A cryptoasset that gives holders voting rights for a protocol, application, or DAO to facilitate decentralized governance.
ICO Era	Tokens launched primarily between 2016 and 2018 when Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) were the primary avenue for teams to raise funding. ICOs were primarily denominated in BTC or ETH terms.
Index Token	A cryptoasset that represents a basket of other tokens to give users exposure to multiple assets.
Indonesian Rupiah Stablecoin	A cryptoasset designed to trade at the same price as the Indonesian Rupiah.
Japanese Yen Stablecoin	A cryptoasset designed to trade at the same price as the Japanese Yen.
LST-Fi	An application that integrates liquid staking tokens with financial services such as lending, stablecoin protocols, decentralized exchanges, interest rate swaps, and other platforms, to unlock additional value and enhance the utility of liquid staking tokens.
Meme	A cryptoasset that does not seek to provide any specific utility other than branding and community for the token.
Move-to Earn	A tokenomics model where users can earn cryptoassets by performing physical activities such as walking or exercising.
NFT Exchange	A marketplace where users can buy, sell, or trade non-fungible tokens (NFTs).
NFTs	A cryptoasset that represents ownership or proof of authenticity of a unique piece of content, typically associated with digital art, music, or virtual real estate.
Non-U.S. Dollar Stablecoin	A cryptoasset that is pegged to the value of an asset other than the US dollar, such as another fiat currency, commodity, or cryptoasset.
Optimistic (Fraud Proofs)	A network or protocol that leverages fraud proofs for scaling.
Parachain	A blockchain built with the Substrate framework that leases security from the Polkadot or Kusama relay chains.
Play-to-Earn	A play-to-earn game refers to a model in blockchain-based gaming in which users can earn real-world value in the form of cryptoassets such as tokens or NTFs by achieving certain in-game milestones or tasks.
Privacy	A protocol that obscures transaction details such as sender, receiver, or amount, to protect user data and ensure anonymity on a blockchain-based network.
Proof-of-Stake	A blockchain network that utilizes the Proof-of-Stake consensus mechanism.
Proof-of-Work	A blockchain network that utilizes the Proof-of-Work consensus mechanism.
Revenue Tokens	Tokens that grant holders a claim on protocol-generated revenue.
SEC Alleged Securities	A cryptoasset that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of the United States alleges is a security.
Singapore Dollar Stablecoin	A cryptoasset designed to trade at the same price as the Singapore Dollar.
South Korean Won Stablecoin	A cryptoasset designed to trade at the same price as the South Korean Won.
Stableswap	An exchange designed to efficiently swap between stablecoins with low slippage and minimal price impact.
Stakeable	A non-native asset that can be staked or locked in a smart contract to earn yield or participate in governance.
Swiss Franc Stablecoin	A cryptoasset designed to trade at the same price as the Swiss Franc.
Turkish Lira Stablecoin	A cryptoasset designed to trade at the same price as the Turkish Lira.
U.S. Dollar Stablecoin	A cryptoasset designed to trade at the same price as the U.S. Dollar.
Wrapped Bitcoin Asset	A token deployed on any blockchain other than Bitcoin that is redeemable for native BTC. This can include custodial and non-custodial wrapped BTC.
Yield Aggregator	A protocol or service that automatically optimizes funds in DeFi on behalf of users to maximize potential returns.
Zero Knowledge (Validity Proofs)	A network or protocol that leverages zero-knowledge cryptography, such as validity proofs, for scaling or privacy.