In the privacy public chain sector, the Dusk project is quite interesting. Founded in 2018, it focuses on privacy-first and compliance-oriented solutions. In simple terms, it aims to connect institutional assets and real-world assets (RWA) on the chain, creating true economic inclusion.

In terms of funding, it’s impressive — with $140 million raised from top institutions like Maven 11 and Blockground Capital. In 2020, it also raised an additional $124 million through an IPO, with its valuation climbing steadily.

Technologically, it uses the Isolated Byzantine Agreement (SBA) consensus mechanism combined with zero-knowledge proof technology stack. It sounds complex, but the core idea is to protect privacy while meeting compliance requirements. The implementation integrates hardcore cryptographic solutions like Bulletproofs + MLSAG signatures and the PLONK proof system, building a privacy smart contract platform called Rusk.

On the product side, it has three main components: Dusk Vault (a zero-trust custody solution), Dusk Pay (payment infrastructure), and Citadel, a compliance KYC solution. It sounds like a tailored solution for institutional clients.

The ecosystem is quite solidly grounded. It has partnered with the Dutch licensed exchange NPEX to promote a €300 million securities tokenization project, and has integrated Chainlink oracles to strengthen on-chain securities infrastructure. The zero-trust custody solution is already live.

Currently, its market cap is about $28.1 million. After the mainnet upgrade, it plans to add modules like DEX and cross-chain bridges, aiming to become a compliance channel for RWA between traditional finance and Web3.