Starknet brings programmable privacy to Zcash-style assets

Starknet now offers programmable private money, the kind of confidential digital cash Zcash pioneered, through its new privacy features. The effort runs on two tracks. One is STRK20, a token privacy framework that is live on Starknet, the Ethereum layer 2 network. The other is Ztarknet, a project still in development that would bring Starknet’s execution engine to Zcash as its own layer 2. What STRK20 actually does STRK20 is a framework for token-level privacy. It applies to any ERC-20-like asset, the standard format for most tokens in the Ethereum ecosystem. Once a token uses STRK20, its balances and transfers can be confidential. The sender, the receiver, and the amount can all be hidden from public view. The framework supports DeFi activity such as swaps, lending, and staking while keeping transaction details private. Compliance is built in through two mechanisms: viewing keys and selective disclosure. A viewing key lets an authorized party, such as an auditor, see transaction details that remain hidden from everyone else. Selective disclosure allows a user to prove specific facts about their activity to a specific party without exposing everything to the entire network. The res...