Handshake.money
At Blockverse, one of our recurring tasks was helping clients find the right partners. But the whole thing was painfully manual. Spreadsheets. Cold DMs. Telegram lists. No automation. No structure.
One day, during one of our sync calls, someone casually said:
“Why isn’t there a simple platform for this?”
Silence. Then nods.
That was it. That was the spark.
We thought about it for a few days.
Then we did what 8-something builders do best — we jumped in.
We started brainstorming names. Friends? Builders? Founders? What connects them?
“Handshake.”
Clean. Direct. Symbolic.
Now the domain... handshake.com? Taken. handshake.xyz? Meh.
handshake.money? Boom. It fit the vibe perfectly.
Handshake.money
At Blockverse, one of our recurring tasks was helping clients find the right partners. But the whole thing was painfully manual. Spreadsheets. Cold DMs. Telegram lists. No automation. No structure.
One day, during one of our sync calls, someone casually said:
“Why isn’t there a simple platform for this?”
Silence. Then nods.
That was it. That was the spark.
We thought about it for a few days.
Then we did what 8-something builders do best — we jumped in.
We started brainstorming names. Friends? Builders? Founders? What connects them?
“Handshake.”
Clean. Direct. Symbolic.
Now the domain... handshake.com? Taken. handshake.xyz? Meh.
handshake.money? Boom. It fit the vibe perfectly.
We kept running Blockverse by day — and built Handshake.money by night.
It was our first time building a product of our own.
We mapped the workflows, designed branding, built out mockups, and even hired a few contractors to begin development. 10+ early partners onboarded. UI coming together. Our vision was alive.
But something started feeling… off.
Dev cycles slowed. Momentum dipped. Conversations felt forced.
We paused. Took a breath. Asked ourselves:
“Did we actually validate this idea?”
The honest answer? No.
We skipped the first principle: talk to users.
We assumed the need instead of understanding it.
And when we finally did dig in, we realised something brutal but freeing:
Most companies weren’t looking for a “partner discovery” tool.
They were looking for alignment — values, vision, energy.
And no platform could automate that.
Because at the end of the day, companies aren’t just looking for partners.
They’re looking for people who get it.
A culture fit, not just a checklist match.
Handshake.money never fully launched. But it taught us what no book ever could:
That building a product starts with listening.
And no amount of design or tech can replace genuine understanding.
But something started feeling… off.
Dev cycles slowed. Momentum dipped. Conversations felt forced.
We paused. Took a breath. Asked ourselves:
“Did we actually validate this idea?”
The honest answer? No.
We skipped the first principle: talk to users.
We assumed the need instead of understanding it.
And when we finally did dig in, we realised something brutal but freeing:
Most companies weren’t looking for a “partner discovery” tool.
They were looking for alignment — values, vision, energy.
And no platform could automate that.
Because at the end of the day, companies aren’t just looking for partners.
They’re looking for people who get it.
A culture fit, not just a checklist match.
Handshake.money never fully launched. But it taught us what no book ever could:
That building a product starts with listening.
And no amount of design or tech can replace genuine understanding.
