L1#
Zcash
Since: 2015
One Sentence: Zcash is the original zk-SNARK chain that makes shielded payments native, now rebuilt on Halo proofs to scale privacy without trusted setup.
Coti
Since: 2017
One Sentence: COTI is a privacy compute layer built on garbled circuits, pushing DeFi and data apps into encrypted execution.
Beam
Since: 2018
One Sentence: Beam is a Mimblewimble-based chain that hides everything by default and is now strapping on EVM + L2 to bring confidential DeFi into the open arena.
Conceal.Network
Since: 2018
One Sentence: Conceal is a CryptoNote-based chain that makes every transaction untraceable with ring signatures and stealth addresses, wrapping payments, staking, and messaging into a privacy-first ecosystem.
Aleo
Since: 2019
One Sentence: Aleo is a zero-knowledge L1 that turns privacy into the default and makes building encrypted apps feel like writing smart contracts.
DarkFi
Since: 2021
One Sentence: DarkFi is a UTXO-based privacy chain with zkVM and ZK Assembly, embedding Money contracts to make anonymous transfers, balance aggregation, and multi-asset logic native on-chain.
L2#
Aztec
Since: 2018
One Sentence: Aztec is an Ethereum L2 privacy protocol using zk‑SNARKs to enable fully shielded ERC‑20 transfers, private smart contracts, and confidential DeFi, with zero-knowledge proofs ensuring on-chain validity without revealing transaction details.
ARPA Network
Since: 2018
One Sentence is an Ethereum Layer-2 privacy network where MPC and threshold BLS let encrypted data compute on-chain, powering secure bridges, verifiable randomness, and Web3 privacy apps.
Olavm
Since: 2022
One Sentence: Ola is a ZKP-first Bitcoin Layer-2 where OlaVM, Ola-lang, and Massive let developers build programmable privacy and users run decentralized verifiers on mobile
One Sentence:
TEN
Since: 2022
One Sentence: TEN is an Ethereum L2 with a fully encrypted EVM powered by TEE, delivering private, fair, zero-MEV transactions while staying fast, decentralized, and dev-friendly.
Arcium
Since: 2022
One Sentence: Arcium is a Layer‑2 privacy smart contract platform using zkSNARK/zkSTARK to enable encrypted on-chain computation, developer-friendly private contracts, and cross-chain-ready privacy applications for DeFi, gaming, and enterprise, with chain‑offload scaling and modular zk‑proof architecture.
True ZK
Since: 2023
One Sentence: TrueZK is a zkRollup + zkEVM Layer‑2 enabling privacy-on-demand, modular address/amount/data obfuscation, chain‑off execution with on-chain ZK proofs, and account abstraction for secure, auditable, and developer‑friendly private smart contracts.