ARC is an open-source security master database for digital assets, eliminating proprietary biases and ensuring timely updates through community contributions.
Amberdata, the leader in digital asset data and analytics for institutional customers, today announces the launch of Asset Reference and Classification (ARC), an institutional-grade security master database for digital assets.
“Amberdata is excited to launch ARC, the first and only open-source security master database for digital assets,” said Shawn Douglass, CEO, Amberdata. “ARC addresses a significant barrier to digital asset adoption for institutional participants, enabling them to enter the asset class with confidence, maintaining accurate records internally and with other institutions. The open-source approach to ARC is key, allowing the database to stay current and unbiased through the contributions of a wide community of institutional digital asset participants.”
“Amberdata’s Asset Reference and Classification (ARC) database is a timely and much-needed contribution to the industry,” said Mira Witzig Borja, VP of Markets Strategic Investments, Citi. “As demand from institutional clients continues to increase, ARC equips these clients with critical infrastructure to derive standardization, transparency, and completeness in their digital asset activities. In turn, we anticipate market participants may find increased confidence in digital assets by ARC connecting disparate dots.”
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“Amberdata’s ARC initiative is a significant step forward for the digital asset industry,” said Dennis Chou, Director of Trading, Pantera. “The lack of a standard security master has long been a barrier to efficient operations and regulatory compliance. By introducing an open-source approach with ARC, they’re not only breaking down the walled gardens but also addressing the fundamental need for interoperability and transparency. ARC’s proposed standard paves the way for a more collaborative ecosystem, where exchanges, custodians, and data providers can speak the same language, ultimately benefiting the entire industry.”
“The debut of ARC by Amberdata marks a pivotal advancement in blockchain technology’s evolution, bridging the gap between traditional finance standards and on-chain operations,” said Will Nuelle, General Partner of Ventures at Galaxy. “By introducing ARC, we can expect greater transparency, alignment, and cross-chain collaboration, catalyzing widespread adoption within our industry.”
A security master database is a data store that contains reference data about financial products and is used by market participants to organize their records across trading, risk, clearing, and settlement operations. Because the universe of digital assets is vast and a single asset can be accessed across an ever-changing number of blockchain networks, trading venues and protocols, maintaining an accurate security master database is even more difficult than for traditional assets.
Current proprietary solutions for digital assets are challenged to stay current with the changing digital asset landscape, and the closed nature of the proprietary offerings results in a disjointed view of the digital asset universe, creating barriers to maintaining accurate business records and interoperability between financial institutions.
By contrast, ARC is an open-source dataset that enables financial institutions to segment and view the digital asset universe with a consistent lens. By combining the reference details, classification, and categorization, ARC is a one-stop solution that provides transparency into the operations and use cases of any digital asset.
The open-source nature of ARC allows the dataset to benefit from the contributions of a broad community of digital asset participants, eliminating biases due to proprietary judgments on reference data, attributes, categorization, and classification.
While ARC is an open-source dataset, Amberdata will be the primary maintainer. Contribution guidelines are currently available, allowing the institutional finance community to contribute to and expand the dataset. ARC is constantly updated and available via GitHub, analytics-friendly flat-file formats, and an API. Amberdata also plans to release an ARC explorer interface, so that users can search for and identify digital assets, as well as mapping ARC IDs to other standards, including LSEG PermIds.
Use cases for ARC include:
- Decision Making – Unify stakeholders across front, middle, and back offices to make informed decisions.
- Analysis and Reference – Keep records of the highly dynamic universe of digital assets with a repository of accurate asset and classification information for reference and analysis.
- Trading – Optimize execution workflows and enhance trade execution strategies.
- Risk Management – Strengthen risk assessment and mitigation practices throughout the asset lifecycle and align with regulations.
- Tax and Accounting Compliance – Streamline accounting operations, ensure compliance with regulations, and report digital asset transactions.
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