Certik

CertiK is a blockchain and Web3 security company headquartered in New York. Its platform combines formal verification methods with a range of security services, including smart contract and blockchain code audits, penetration testing, DLT security solutions for enterprise infrastructure, proof-of-reserves audits, on-chain monitoring, AML and risk management (SkyInsights), and incident response. It also offers regulatory advisory products such as VARA compliance solutions for Dubai VASP licensing and DORA/MiCA advisory for EU crypto-asset service providers.

The company's Skynet product provides real-time project ratings and 24/7 active monitoring of deployed smart contracts, with a public Security Leaderboard; Skynet Premium, released alongside the August 2021 funding round, added active monitoring, real-time alerts and an analytics dashboard for enterprise clients. CertiK segments its offerings for enterprises, Web3 projects, exchanges and custodians, regulators and compliance teams, and security researchers, and in July 2026 launched an invite-only "Hunt" platform for security researchers.

CertiK also publishes security and market research (for example reports on crypto hacks, North Korea-linked thefts, physical "wrench" attacks, AML enforcement trends and prediction markets) and engages in policy work, stating relationships with the U.S. Congress, the Monetary Authority of Singapore, Hong Kong SAR, the Financial Services Agency of Japan, Abu Dhabi Global Market, and Seoul and Busan governments.

Founding story

CertiK was founded by professors from Columbia University and Yale University, growing out of academic research on certified software. Cofounder Zhong Shao is the Thomas L. Kempner Professor and Chair of Computer Science at Yale, whose FLINT group developed CertiKOS, described as the first hacker-resistant concurrent operating system; co-founder and CEO Ronghui Gu is an Associate Professor of Computer Science at Columbia and a primary designer of CertiKOS and SeKVM. Founding year is given as 2017 on CertiK's about page and by EquityZen's data field, while Built In NYC and the descriptive text used by both Built In and EquityZen state 2018.

Business model

CertiK sells security and compliance services and software to blockchain and Web3 organizations, spanning one-off engagements such as code audits, penetration tests and proof-of-reserves verification, and ongoing subscription-style products such as Skynet monitoring (Skynet Premium enterprise tier) and SkyInsights AML/transaction monitoring. Sources describe enterprise clients and booked Skynet revenue but do not detail pricing.

Revenue is generated from client engagements and product subscriptions; the company reported that revenue grew 20x in the year preceding December 2021 and that Skynet booked revenue grew 2,300% since the end of 2020, while Q1 2021 revenue more than quadrupled full-year 2020 revenue.

Traction

Company-reported figures include 5,500 clients served, $526B in market capitalization assessed, 1.8 million monthly Skynet users and 117,000+ vulnerabilities detected. Earlier reported milestones were over 1,300 enterprise clients, $90 billion in digital assets secured and 23,000 vulnerabilities detected (2021), and over 1,800 audit clients by December 2021. CertiK also received Sui's top bug bounty of $600,000 for a critical vulnerability.

Latest developments

In 2026 CertiK joined Hub71 in Abu Dhabi as a preferred security and compliance vendor for startups (July 2026), launched an invite-only Hunt platform for security researchers (July 2026), and published research on crypto hack losses ($1.3 billion in 2026), physical/"wrench" attacks, North Korea-linked theft, AML enforcement overtaking SEC securities cases as the top crypto risk, and prediction market growth to $63.5B in 2025. It also engaged with Brazil's central bank on VASP rules and participated in the United Nations Global Fraud Summit 2026.