The Aztec Foundation has recently announced the launch of an independent privacy-focused payment protocol called APEX (Advanced Privacy Exchange), aimed at addressing the longstanding privacy-versus-compliance dilemma in the stablecoin payments market. Global crypto venture capital firm Paradigm and quantitative trading giant Jump Trading have also joined as strategic investors, providing significant funding and resources to support APEX’s future growth.

In recent years, as crypto assets and stablecoins have rapidly risen in the global payments ecosystem, transaction privacy issues have increasingly come to light. Public blockchains like Ethereum and Tron are fully transparent, meaning user transaction data is completely open for all to see. As a result, individuals — and especially corporate users — leveraging stablecoins for payments cannot effectively protect their financial privacy. Corporate finance departments, in particular, are highly sensitive about commercial data being exposed to competitors or the public. This creates an urgent demand for a solution that safeguards privacy while still adhering to regulatory requirements.

Aztec Labs, a leading team in Ethereum privacy technology, has long been recognized for its cutting-edge zero-knowledge proof (ZK) innovations. Core technologies developed by Aztec — such as the PLONK zero-knowledge proof system and the Noir programming language — are widely used in developing private smart contracts on Ethereum.

APEX was born out of this technological and market backdrop, leveraging Aztec Labs’ advanced privacy tech and focusing on the stablecoin payments sector (like USDT and USDC). It aims to provide businesses and individuals with a payment solution that offers both bank-grade privacy protection and regulatory auditability. Aztec Labs co-founder and CEO Zac Williamson said, “My original intention in incubating APEX was to help move zero-knowledge privacy technology from the proof-of-concept stage into mainstream commercial payment applications. We hope APEX can serve as a bridge between traditional financial institutions and crypto payment networks, allowing enterprises to enjoy blockchain efficiency while still ensuring both privacy and compliance.”

A partner at Paradigm also expressed strong support for the initiative, stating, “We are very bullish on the potential of zero-knowledge proof technology in the payments and financial sectors. Aztec’s deep expertise in privacy tech was a primary reason we supported Aztec Network previously. Now, by backing APEX, we are particularly impressed with its targeted focus on the stablecoin payments market and its clear technological roadmap.”

Jump Trading’s crypto arm, Jump Crypto, has likewise been investing heavily in cross-chain technology and crypto financial infrastructure. Its own Wormhole project, for instance, has become an important conduit for transferring assets across multiple blockchains. The head of Jump Crypto emphasized, “In the Web3 era, cross-chain payments and privacy protection are two financial infrastructure trends that cannot be overlooked. APEX, with its innovative ZK OmniRouter technology, not only efficiently aggregates multi-chain stablecoin liquidity but also effectively conceals transaction details. This capability meets the stringent privacy demands of enterprises and institutions and is one of the key reasons we invested.”

On the technical side, APEX uses zero-knowledge proof technology to construct a cross-chain privacy payment protocol. Its ZK OmniRouter cross-chain aggregation engine supports Ethereum, Binance Smart Chain (BSC), Tron, Polygon, Solana, and Layer-2 networks such as zkSync, Arbitrum, and Optimism. Users can anonymously bring stablecoin assets from different chains into APEX’s unified privacy pool. All cross-chain transactions are aggregated and mixed through the zero-knowledge router before being output, so on-chain fund flows and account links are effectively concealed — external observers cannot trace the path of funds. This design provides strong protection for user privacy and security.

Unlike purely anonymous coin-mixing protocols (such as Tornado Cash), APEX goes a step further by reinforcing compliance and audit capabilities alongside privacy protection. In its smart contract design, APEX draws on features from mainstream compliant stablecoins (like USDC), embedding compliance mechanisms such as mint-and-burn permissions, address blacklisting, an emergency transaction pause function, and audit logging. This setup allows APEX to selectively disclose transaction data under lawful regulatory requests. Such measures ensure that APEX can protect user privacy without becoming a hotbed for money laundering or illicit funds, thus earning greater acceptance from regulators.

APEX is currently pursuing an ecosystem partnership program aimed at attracting more stablecoin issuers, payment companies, and financial institutions to join its network. The Aztec Foundation will continue to provide strong technical support and community resources to help APEX gradually expand into global markets. Aztec Labs also stated that it will continue to support more application-level projects like APEX within its ecosystem, further broadening the use of privacy technology in real-world business scenarios.

The strategic investments from Paradigm and Jump Trading provide APEX with ample capital and strategic guidance for future expansion and global outreach. This backing by industry-leading institutions signals their recognition of the privacy payments market’s potential and represents a proactive bet on its growth. It further boosts confidence in APEX’s future development.

The launch of APEX not only marks a technological advancement in the stablecoin privacy payments arena, but also offers a new approach to privacy protection in the financial industry. As more enterprises and institutions join the APEX network, stablecoin payments may well enter a new era that balances efficiency, privacy, and compliance.

Disclaimer: The information provided in this press release is not a solicitation for investment, nor is it intended as investment advice, financial advice, or trading advice. It is strongly recommended you practice due diligence, including consultation with a professional financial advisor, before investing in or trading cryptocurrency and securities.