Messari (company)

Messari (company)
Name	Messari
Founded	2018
Founders	Ryan Selkis; Adam Cochran
Headquarters	New York City
Industry	Financial technology; Venture capital
Products	Crypto data; Research; Compliance tools

Messari (company) is a private financial services firm focused on digital asset data, research, and compliance products. Founded in 2018, the firm provides market intelligence, asset profiles, and regulatory reporting tools to institutional investors, hedge funds, exchanges, and venture capital firms. Messari sought to standardize disclosure practices across blockchain projects while competing with legacy market data providers and crypto-focused research platforms.

History

Messari was co‑founded in 2018 by Ryan Selkis and Adam Cochran following Selkis's tenure at CoinDesk and Cochran's activity in crypto investing and technical analysis. Early growth paralleled the 2019–2021 expansion of Bitcoin, Ethereum and the broader cryptocurrency market, drawing capital from venture capital firms and angel investors. The company released a public database of crypto asset profiles, followed by paid offerings aimed at institutional participants including hedge funds and family offices. Messari expanded internationally with hires from firms such as Goldman Sachs and Coinbase and engaged with regulatory developments involving the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and various national agencies. In 2020–2022 the firm launched governance and disclosure initiatives responding to scrutiny of token issuers after events tied to Mt. Gox, Terra fallout, and exchange failures; Messari's work intersected with policy discussions in jurisdictions including the United States, United Kingdom, and European Union.

Products and Services

Messari's offerings include a paid subscription research platform and free public databases covering token metrics, project disclosures, and market data. Core products encompass profiles of digital assets, real‑time market data feeds, and a research portal used by institutional subscribers such as pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, and crypto native asset managers. The company provides an API for integration with trading desks at cryptocurrency exchanges, and analytics used by prime brokers and custodians. Messari developed a disclosure registry and compliance toolkit used during token offerings and secondary markets, partnering with legal advisors from firms active in securities law and financial regulation. Additional services include bespoke research, due diligence reports for venture capital investors, and governance monitoring for on‑chain protocols such as projects built on Polkadot, Solana, and Avalanche.

Data and Research Methodology

Messari aggregates on‑chain datasets, centralized exchange order book feeds, and project‑provided disclosures to produce standardized asset profiles and metrics. Methodologies draw on blockchain explorer data from networks like Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and Binance Smart Chain while incorporating market data from major venues including Binance, Coinbase, and Kraken. Research practices include token economics modeling, vesting schedule audits, and network activity analysis using tools similar to blockchain analytics firms such as Chainalysis and Elliptic. Messari publishes methodological notes describing data normalization, outlier treatment, and provenance tracing for wallets linked to known entities like Tether issuers or institutional custodians. The firm’s taxonomy attempts to harmonize asset classifications across standards advocated by Financial Stability Board stakeholders and industry consortia.

Business Model and Funding

Messari operates a freemium model combining public data with subscription tiers for institutional clients, offering enterprise licenses, API access, and consulting engagements. Revenue streams include recurring subscription fees, custom research retainer services for hedge funds and asset managers, and licensing of datasets to trading firms and exchanges. Early funding rounds involved participation from industry investors and traditional venture capital firms; Messari has engaged in strategic partnerships with market infrastructure providers and data aggregators. The capital strategy emphasized scalable SaaS delivery alongside high‑margin bespoke research to service compliance needs of corporate and institutional counterparts.

Regulatory and Legal Issues

Messari’s activities intersect with regulatory scrutiny over token classification, disclosure obligations, and market surveillance. The firm engaged with agencies such as the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission through public comment, research dissemination, and participation in industry working groups. Data collection and publication exposed Messari to legal considerations regarding proprietary exchange data, privacy of on‑chain actors, and liabilities tied to research findings; the company navigated contractual agreements and intellectual property norms with major venue providers. Messari has been active in debates over whether certain tokens constitute securities under precedents set by cases involving entities such as Ripple.

Reception and Impact

Messari has been credited with improving transparency and standardization in the digital asset sector by institutional market participants, journalists at outlets like The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg, and policy researchers. Analysts have noted its influence on disclosure norms for token issuers and its role in informing due diligence by venture capital and hedge fund investors. Critics and competitors pointed to coverage gaps, the challenges of reconciling on‑chain anonymity with disclosure demands, and commercial tensions with exchanges over data access. Overall, Messari contributed to the maturation of crypto market infrastructure alongside firms such as CoinMarketCap, Glassnode, and The Block.

Category:Financial services companies Category:Blockchain companies