Private transactions have finally made their way to public blockchains after years of anticipation. Although privacy technology has existed for some time, it has always been limited in terms of scalability and the types of assets it can support. Additionally, lack of cross-chain compatibility has hindered its usage to mono-chain solutions.
Fortunately, a new wave of protocols has emerged that allow both consumers and enterprises to enjoy the benefits of blockchain without exposing sensitive data to the public eye. These projects are ushering in a new era for confidential onchain transactions.
COTI, a digital payments network, has found a solution to the challenge of scalable blockchain privacy. By using Garbled Circuits, a technology that is 1,000 times faster and 250 times lighter than existing privacy solutions, COTI is able to scale and support high-volume payments and transactions without adding significant computational or cost burdens. Garbled Circuits rely on multi-party computation (MPC) to preserve private data. Through years of research by Dr. Avishay Yanai and his team at Soda Labs, COTI has achieved a breakthrough that is more efficient than any current privacy solution on the market. While retaining its community and native token, COTI is now taking shape on a new L2 where sensitive financial data can be transmitted privately.
Namada, developed by Anoma Foundation, has achieved a sought-after privacy solution: shielded multi-asset transactions. This solution covers not only fungible tokens but also NFTs across various EVM and Cosmos blockchains. What sets Namada apart is its modular shielding layer that can be retrofitted to existing assets, blockchains, and decentralized applications (dapps). This means that protocols that are public by default can introduce optional privacy features, benefiting all cross-chain users. Users have full control over which assets they share and which they keep private, allowing data to remain confidential when using chains such as Cosmos and Ethereum.
Fhenix, a confidentiality-enabling Layer 2 blockchain, brings private transactions to Ethereum using Fully Homomorphic Encryption (FHE). FHE allows calculations to be performed on encrypted data without decryption, enabling innovative use cases such as training machine learning models using encrypted datasets. FHE also obfuscates transaction data within the decentralized finance (DeFi) industry and enables confidential voting and discreet proposals in public DAOs. Fhenix is leading the way in adopting FHE for blockchain privacy.
TEN aims to bring encryption to the Ethereum ecosystem, allowing EVM users to benefit from private transactions. Developed by the team behind R3 Corda, TEN operates as a Layer 2 leveraging a unique Proof of Block Inclusion (POBI) protocol. By encrypting blockchain transactions using Secure Enclaves, TEN ensures strong confidentiality guarantees while supporting smart contracts, decentralization, and scalability. TEN’s L2 uses Confidential roll-ups, a modified type of roll-up derived from those on L2s like Optimism and zkSync. This allows TEN to retain the performance and simplicity of Optimistic roll-ups while incorporating much-needed privacy.
INTMAX is a Layer 2 zkRollup that utilizes stateless architecture to provide an efficient, secure, and scalable solution for asset transfers. By performing calculations and data preservation on the client side, INATMAX is one of the most efficient native Ethereum L2 solutions. With just 5 bytes of on-chain information, INTMAX significantly reduces computational and storage overhead compared to traditional blockchain systems. It achieves at least 100,000 transfers per second on Ethereum, parallelizing up to the number of users. INTMAX prioritizes scalable private payments for the mass market, offering low transaction fees and strong decentralization.
Thanks to the efforts of projects like COTI, Namada, Fhenix, TEN, and INTMAX, onchain privacy is now a feasible reality. Confidential transactions can now be executed across various EVM chains without significant trade-offs. Web3 users can enjoy public transactions while keeping their financial data private.
Disclaimer: This article does not constitute investment advice. Investing in cryptocurrencies carries risks, and capital is at risk.
