Privacy Chains Sharpen an Institutional Pitch, and a Debate Over Who Holds the Off-Switch

Aztec and Miden argue confidential execution is now a prerequisite for serious on-chain use, while contesting who controls the ability to disclose.

The privacy-focused networks building on zero-knowledge cryptography are reframing confidentiality from a niche feature into a baseline requirement for institutional adoption. Miden argues that practical privacy is the precondition for bloc…