Aztec brings back zk.money for private Ethereum payments

Aztec Labs relaunched zk.money on Sept. 29, bringing its self-custodial wallet back for private crypto payments on the Aztec Network, an Ethereum Layer 2. The company said in its relaunch announcement that users keep their own keys and that balances and payment history are private by default. The Block reported that amounts and counterparties are also hidden from the public ledger for payments inside the wallet.

The earlier version shut down in 2023. Aztec said it had reached more than 75,000 unique wallets and processed over $100 million in volume during its first year. The company said the old system was difficult to expand and could not scale globally. It spent the next three years building the Aztec Network, where the relaunched wallet now runs.

How does the wallet keep payments private?

Users claim a handle such as “yourname.zk.money” and can share a link to send or request payment. Aztec says the handles are secured by a passkey, which can sync across devices. A passkey is a sign-in key stored on a user’s device or account.

Funds enter from Ethereum, move privately inside zk.money, and can later be withdrawn to Ethereum. The privacy applies to activity inside the wallet. Ethereum deposits remain public, as do Ethereum transactions generally. The wallet is open source and self-custodial, meaning Aztec says it cannot move or spend users’ funds.

What comes next for zk.money?

The wallet is available through its website, and users can also run it locally on their own device. Aztec told The Block it plans to connect zk.money to Ethereum DeFi protocols, with integrations expected in the fourth quarter. It did not name partners. A mobile app is also planned for the quarter, but the company gave no launch date.

The new wallet is separate from the older system that Aztec retired. The Block reported that Aztec said two old contracts tied to discontinued products were exploited in June, and that the current wallet runs on the newer Aztec Network and was not affected. That leaves open how quickly the new wallet will gain users and whether its planned integrations will arrive on schedule.

References

• relaunch announcement — aztec-labs.com