Nocturne Launches Private Accounts Protocol on Ethereum Mainnet

According to Blockworks, Nocturne has launched the first version of its protocol on the Ethereum mainnet, enabling private accounts. The protocol allows users to deposit or receive funds privately using stealth addresses, as described by Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin. Users can generate secret spending and viewing keys, which can then be used to create multiple meta-addresses for interacting with other accounts. These addresses are stored within Nocturne smart contracts and are intended for trading 'hot assets,' or crypto assets not designed to be held. Nocturne's smart accounts will be compatible with DeFi protocols that 'represent state via output tokens,' meaning they will only work with tokens that gain value from a previous input or require collateral deposits to mint the token. Examples of such tokens include Uniswap liquidity tokens, Aave's aTokens, and Compound's cTokens. Nocturne plans to extend smart account compatibility to arbitrary protocols using zero-knowledge technology, which can prove asset ownership without revealing asset details. Luke Tchang, CEO and co-founder of Nocturne, stated that the company aims to embed privacy at the account layer, moving away from being just a 'privacy tool.' Nocturne v1 can be accessed through a private vault user interface, with current capabilities limited to deposits, token transfers to burner addresses, and private swapping and staking. Future versions will include a 'proof-of-innocence' protocol for verifying transactions without revealing user identity and increased compatibility with arbitrary smart contracts for Nocturne wallets.