Arkham CEO anticipates monetizing platform this year, plans to keep main functions free

Arkham Intelligence CEO Miguel Morel says he anticipates the blockchain data platform will start offering paid features at some point this year but intends to keep the core product free. 

“I could have turned on the monetization months ago. And we've chosen not to because we feel there are more people out there who could continue to benefit from our services,” Morel said in an interview at ETHCC.

When asked when this will happen, Morel said he estimates later this year. He clarified that the key goal is to reach the right level of growth before doing so.

“From a vision perspective, I want the main pillars of Arkham to be free. Forever being able to look at entities, being able to do search, being able to look at people's portfolios, stuff like that. I want that to be free forever,” Morel said.

He added that products like the API or its visualization or tracer tools are not necessary parts of the product and that the company could charge for access in the future in these areas.

Morel noted the platform is preparing to add support for the TON blockchain, which should be out in around two weeks. The platform is also adding support for Solana, and he estimated it should be ready by the end of August. He said integrating Solana will cost the platform $1 million per year but noted the company received a grant to support this.

Morel claimed there’s no good block explorer for the Solana blockchain – something even its most ardent supporters admit – and suggested that being able to analyze the chain more easily could uncover newsworthy information.

“Keep in mind, these chains are forever. So even if somebody did something like a while back, somebody could theoretically dig that up and see actually what went down,” he said.

Arkham has seen a notable uptake in use recently, particularly with analysts using the platform to monitor the movement of bitcoin by the German government and the Mt. Gox repayments.

“We actually built something unique that’s got product market fit. And the more eyeballs and the more people who look at it, the more it spreads,” Morel said.