Four Crypto Projects Pioneering Private Transactions on Public Chains

The demand for private transactions on public chains has grown significantly in recent years. This is because regulators want visibility for compliance, while users want confidentiality to protect their sensitive data. In response, several projects have emerged that focus on confidential computing and zero-knowledge proofs.

COTI is a programmable layer built for confidential transactions and private smart contracts. It uses Garbled Circuits, a cryptographic method that allows computation on encrypted data. This approach is significantly faster and lighter than other methods, making it suitable for enterprise-grade applications.

Aleph Zero is another project that focuses on zero-knowledge proofs generated on the user's own device. Its flagship system, zkOS, uses zero-knowledge technology to enable confidential smart contracts without exposing sensitive data. The project also has an older layer called Liminal, which combines ZK-SNARKs with Secure Multi-Party Computation to protect transaction details.

Telos is a high-speed Layer 1 blockchain that launched a dedicated Privacy Layer in 2026. It uses zkSNARK cryptography to enable shielded transfers and has implemented a scaling engine called SNARKtor, which handles recursive proof aggregation for efficiency.

iExec RLC is a decentralized cloud computing platform that focuses on confidential computing rather than anonymous payments. It uses Trusted Execution Environments, secure hardware-based enclaves that isolate data during processing, to protect inputs, outputs, and business logic even from privileged system access.