Arbitrum (ARB): how it works, supply and reviews
In short
- Type
- Ethereum layer 2: rollup that executes off-chain and posts compressed data and state commitments to Ethereum
- Initial supply
- 10 billion ARB at launch; inflation of at most 2% per year can be enabled by the DAO
- Risks and caveats
- The sequencer that orders transactions is centralised and run by the Arbitrum Foundation; it can delay a transaction by up to 24 hours.
- Checked
- 31 October 2026
Visitor ratings: do you like Arbitrum?
Key facts
- Ticker
- ARB
- Official site
- arbitrum.io
Key facts checked on 31 October 2026 against official sources.
What is Arbitrum
Arbitrum is a family of Ethereum layer-2 chains, led by the optimistic rollup Arbitrum One, that make Ethereum transactions faster and cheaper while settling on Ethereum. ARB is its governance token: it is used to vote in the ArbitrumDAO and does not pay transaction fees, which are paid in ETH.
Network and consensus
| Parameter | Details |
|---|---|
| Type | Ethereum layer 2: rollup that executes off-chain and posts compressed data and state commitments to Ethereum |
| Consensus | Optimistic rollup with fraud proofs (BoLD); one honest validator is enough to keep the chain secure |
| Validators | Validation on Arbitrum One is permissionless under the BoLD protocol |
| Smart contracts | Yes; Nitro runs a modified fork of Geth, so most Ethereum code runs unchanged |
| Launched | Arbitrum One launched in 2021; upgraded to Nitro in August 2022 |
Supply and issuance
| Parameter | Details |
|---|---|
| Initial supply | 10 billion ARB at launch; inflation of at most 2% per year can be enabled by the DAO |
| Initial distribution | ArbitrumDAO treasury 35.28%, team and contributors 26.94%, investors 17.53%, plus airdrops and the Foundation |
| Vesting | Team, contributor and investor tokens unlock monthly over four years from 16 March 2023, the first on 16 March 2024 |
| Airdrop | The ARB airdrop ran from 23 March to 24 September 2023; there was no presale |
On 7 March 2024: 1,537,000,000 ARB in circulation, 10,000,000,000 ARB in total (source: Arbitrum Foundation governance docs, Token Circulating Supply (latest figure published)).
What ARB is used for
- Voting on ArbitrumDAO governance proposals
- Delegating voting power to delegates
- ARB is not used to pay transaction fees; fees are paid in ETH
Who develops and governs Arbitrum
- Governance
- The ArbitrumDAO of ARB holders and delegates controls Arbitrum One and Nova under the DAO Constitution
- Security Council
- A 12-member Security Council, elected by the DAO, can act through a 9-of-12 multisig in emergencies
- Foundation
- The Arbitrum Foundation supports development and governance and operates under Cayman Islands law
- Developer
- Offchain Labs builds the Nitro software stack
- Open source
- Source available: Nitro uses a Business Source License with a grant to run nodes on public Arbitrum chains
History
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 2021 | Arbitrum One, the flagship rollup chain, launches; Arbitrum Nova (AnyTrust) follows. |
| August 2022 | Arbitrum One upgrades to the Nitro stack. |
| 16 March 2023 | ARB token generation event; the airdrop opens on 23 March 2023. |
| September 2026 | Arbitrum Nova is minimised by DAO vote: its data now goes directly to Ethereum. |
Security and audits
- Security audit reports for Nitro are published in the developer docs.
- If a malicious proposal passes or 9 Security Council members are compromised, users would have several weeks to withdraw to Ethereum before it takes effect.
Official ARB contracts
| Network | Contract address |
|---|---|
| Arbitrum One | 0x912CE59144191C1204E64559FE8253a0e49E6548 |
| Ethereum (bridged) | 0xB50721BCf8d664c30412Cfbc6cf7a15145234ad1 |
| Arbitrum Nova (bridged) | 0xf823C3cD3CeBE0a1fA952ba88Dc9EEf8e0Bf46AD |
ARB is an ERC-20 token native to Arbitrum One, with bridged versions on Ethereum and Arbitrum Nova.
Risks and caveats
- The sequencer that orders transactions is centralised and run by the Arbitrum Foundation; it can delay a transaction by up to 24 hours.
- A compromise of 9 of the 12 Security Council members could put the system and users' funds at risk.
- Large team and investor allocations unlock monthly until March 2027.
Official links
- Website: arbitrum.io
- Foundation: arbitrum.foundation
- Docs: docs.arbitrum.io
- Governance docs: docs.arbitrum.foundation
- Source code: github.com/OffchainLabs/nitro
- Governance forum: forum.arbitrum.foundation
Questions and answers
What is Arbitrum?
Arbitrum is a family of Ethereum layer-2 chains, led by the optimistic rollup Arbitrum One, that make transactions faster and cheaper while settling on Ethereum.
What is the ARB token used for?
ARB is a governance token for voting in the ArbitrumDAO. Transaction fees on Arbitrum are paid in ETH, not ARB.
What is the supply of ARB?
The initial supply was 10 billion ARB, with optional inflation of up to 2% a year. 1.537 billion ARB circulated on 7 March 2024, the latest figure published.
Who runs Arbitrum?
The ArbitrumDAO governs the chains, an elected Security Council handles emergencies, the Arbitrum Foundation runs the sequencer, and Offchain Labs builds Nitro.
Was there an ARB airdrop?
Yes. The airdrop ran from 23 March to 24 September 2023; there was no presale.
Sources
- Arbitrum DAO docs — A gentle introduction to the ArbitrumDAO
- Arbitrum DAO docs — Airdrop eligibility and distribution
- Arbitrum DAO docs — Token Circulating Supply
- Arbitrum DAO docs — State of progressive decentralization
- Arbitrum DAO docs — DAO contract addresses
- The Constitution of the ArbitrumDAO
- Arbitrum developer docs — gentle introduction
- Arbitrum Foundation — home page
- Nitro README (GitHub)
More in this section
- XPR Network (XPR)
- Enjin Coin (ENJ)
- Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC)
- Avalanche (AVAX)
- BNB Chain (BNB)
- Internet Computer (ICP)
- All Crypto projects →
How voting works
Votes are anonymous and carry no text. Each device has one vote per item; press the same button again to remove it. Cloudflare Turnstile checks that a person is voting. We keep a random device ID in a cookie and a salted hash of the IP address to limit abuse — no names, no accounts. Votes are visitors’ opinions, not investment advice.
Page updated: