This is part 2 of a three-part series where we review the three key technology innovations of Partisia Blockchain and compare them with other blockchain technologies. You can read more about Partisia Blockchain as well as the performance comparison between various other chains here.
Partisia Blockchain’s core technology, multiparty computation (MPC), allows multiple parties to jointly compute a function on their private inputs without revealing those inputs to each other. This enables secure collaboration and data sharing while preserving confidentiality.
The pursuit of privacy leads to the creation of a groundbreaking zero-knowledge layer. In Partisia Blockchain’s implementation, the input data is secret-shared among multiple nodes, and the computation is performed on these shares, ensuring that no single node can access the raw data.
This ZK layer combines various cryptographic techniques to ensure data confidentiality, integrity and privacy throughout the entire lifecycle of a transaction.
This multi-faceted approach to privacy ensures that user data remains confidential, secure and tamper-proof throughout its lifecycle.
Partisia Blockchain’s MPC smart contracts are designed for comprehensive coordination of both public and private computations. A key differentiator is the introduction of private smart contracts, which streamline the integration of zero-knowledge computation and MPC-as-a-Service solutions.
By integrating Partisia Blockchain’s suite of privacy-centric tools, developers and projects can seamlessly implement best-in-class privacy measures and harness the power of most notably MPC for different use cases.
Mina Protocol is a Layer 1 blockchain that enhances privacy through its utilization of zero-knowledge proofs (ZKPs). These ZK proofs allow for the verification of transactions and the state of the blockchain without revealing sensitive details publicly. However, it is important to note that while transaction details are obscured on the public ledger, node operators still have access to the actual transaction data.
Notably, Mina’s ledger remains a mere 22KB in size, regardless of the number of transactions, ensuring lightweight accessibility and efficient verification.
At the core of Mina’s consensus mechanism is Ouroboros Samisika, a (PoS) protocol derived from Cardano’s Ouroboros. This protocol enables Mina to resolve long-range forks without relying on transaction history or risking centralization. Ouroboros Samisika utilizes verifiable random functions (VRFs) to select block producers, safeguarding the network against Denial-of-Service (DoS) attacks while ensuring scalability.
Leveraging recursive ZKPs allows the creation of an open database of verified statements, fostering composability within the ecosystem. Applications can interact and build upon each other’s verified data without compromising privacy or incurring excessive fees. The “proof of everything” concept allows for the creation of a decentralized network where data and actions are verified and readily usable by other applications, enabling scalable blockchain applications that leverage collaborative computation.
Mina’s forthcoming upgrade aims to further enhance its ZK capabilities, enabling ZK smart contracts (zkApps), Layer 2 solutions, and bridges. This upgrade moves smart contract execution off-chain while maintaining on-chain verification, addressing challenges like data constraints and gas costs.
As for network throughput, many may be confused by the 1 tps, but the developers want to keep the blockchain super lightweight and perform main computations offchain relying on zero-knowledge technology.
Horizen (formerly known as ZenCash) is a privacy-focused Layer 1 blockchain platform that leverages zero-knowledge proofs (ZKPs) and cross-chain protocol Zendoo empowering developers to create customizable sidechains, each with independent consensus mechanisms, tokenomics and functionalities. This architecture allows dApps to operate on their dedicated sidechains, eliminating bandwidth competition and ensuring optimal performance.
Although Horizen’s mainchain relies on the PoW consensus, its zk-SNARK implementation enhances scalability and throughput. By compressing the data needed for transaction validation, zk-SNARKs enable the mainchain to verify the validity of numerous sidechain transactions within a single block.
In essence, zk-SNARKs act as a certificate of validity for sidechain transactions. The sidechain validates its transactions as usual, then constructs a zk-SNARK proof that summarizes the state of the sidechain. The mainchain nodes verify this proof, confirming the correctness of the sidechain’s transactions without needing to validate each one individually.
The upcoming EON 2.0 upgrade represents a significant step forward for Horizen. This upgrade will migrate the Horizen and EON (EVM-compatible sidechain) to a new, fully compatible EVM chain built on the Substrate framework with tight integration to the zkVerify protocol. This will enable faster and more cost-efficient verification of zk-proofs, further enhancing Horizen’s privacy and scalability capabilities.
Conclusion: Partisia Blockchain stands out alone as the only blockchain enabling a customizable privacy layer to enable computation of private information for providing proofs using MPC or ZKP. While other blockchains use ZK proofs, it is more used for performance and proving of a block rather than computation of actual private data.
The emergence of Web3 and Decentralized Finance (DeFi) has ushered in a new era of digital innovation, promising a paradigm shift towards greater transparency, efficiency and accessibility. However, the realization of this necessitates addressing several technical and conceptual challenges inherent in the underlying blockchain technology.
The “blockchain trilemma”, a well-documented conundrum, highlights the intricate trade-offs between decentralization, security and scalability. Achieving an optimal balance between these three pillars is essential for creating a robust, secure and efficient decentralized ecosystem capable of supporting widespread adoption.
This confluence of challenges necessitates the development of sophisticated solutions that can simultaneously address the blockchain trilemma while ensuring robust privacy protection. Partisia Blockchain emerges as a sophisticated response to these challenges through the integration of advanced privacy-preserving cryptographic techniques with a high-performance blockchain architecture.
Partisia Blockchain is a Layer 1 blockchain that redefines the paradigm of decentralized technology by seamlessly integrating privacy-preserving mechanisms with a high-performance architecture. This unique approach addresses the inherent challenges faced by traditional blockchain models, such as scalability limitations and the potential compromise of sensitive data due to the public nature of distributed ledgers.
Central to Partisia Blockchain’s innovation is the implementation of a privacy layer that enables zero-knowledge (ZK) computations to run in parallel with activities on the public blockchain. This groundbreaking integration of blockchain technology and multiparty computation (MPC) vastly expands the possibilities of decentralized applications, allowing for confidential transactions, secure data sharing, and regulatory-compliant solutions.
The platform’s consensus algorithm FastTrack model, a novel approach that combines optimistic block production with a robust Byzantine Fault Tolerance (BFT) mechanism, ensures both rapid transaction validation and the highest levels of security.
Addressing the scalability challenge, Partisia Blockchain employs a comprehensive true sharding solution. This approach dynamically expands the network with manageable segments (blockchains), allowing for efficient processing of high transaction volumes without compromising consensus or security.
To foster a more interconnected blockchain ecosystem, the network has implemented a native collateral bridge, facilitating the secure transfer of assets and information between the Partisia Blockchain and other networks, promoting interoperability and collaboration.
The commitment to privacy extends to the MPC-as-a-Service platform, providing developers with a comprehensive suite of tools. This platform streamlines the orchestration of privacy-preserving computations, enabling a wide range of use cases, from confidential financial transactions to private auctions and secure data sharing.
Finally, Partisia Blockchain fosters a thriving and reliable network through a market for trust that incentivizes node operators to validate transactions, propagate information and provide MPC-as-a-Service. This mechanism ensures that the network is supported by transparent and efficient nodes; thereby, maintaining the highest standards of security and performance.
In this three-part series, we will dive deeper into performance, zero-knowledge technology, and the cross-chain messaging technology stack of Partisia Blockchain versus other solutions in the field.
*Partisia Blockchain uses a unique verification consensus mechanism that guarantees blocks are verified by the validator producing the block.
**Partisia Blockchain uses the original definition of sharding used in the database industry, running multiple blockchains in parallel. We call it “True Sharding”.
Partisia Blockchain stands as a robust and adaptable Layer 1 blockchain that prioritizes privacy, scalability and decentralization. Its innovative FastTrack consensus mechanism, incorporating Proof of Justification (PoJ) and Proof of Finalization (PoF), ensures robust security and transaction finality. The Proof-of-Verification (PoV) mechanism further enhances security by guaranteeing that validators personally verified each block.
The scalability challenge is tackled through a dynamic sharding approach. Unlike traditional blockchain sharding, in Partisia Blockchain shards are an independent blockchain that can separately create, verify and validate a block. While most blockchains create one block at a time, Partisia Blockchain leverages its sharded architecture, now it is four shards (four chains), to generate four blocks at a time and there is no limit.
This architecture allows for true parallel blockchain processing. In the event of congestion, the system can dynamically create new shards, adding capacity on the fly. This dynamic scalability architecture theoretically enables the network to scale horizontally infinitely.
The platform’s versatility is further amplified by its support for diverse node types, each with specialized functions. These include reader nodes for accessing information, baker nodes for producing and validating blocks, ZK nodes for zero-knowledge computations and oracle nodes for oracle services. This diversity caters to a wide array of use cases, making Partisia Blockchain adaptable to evolving demands.
It is also important to mention that Partisia Blockchain eliminates the volatility and unpredictability often associated with blockchain transaction fees. This differs from traditional blockchain models with an approach that combines a fixed-fee structure tied to the US dollar, offering users stability and convenience. This means users know exactly how much they will pay for a transaction, making cost estimation straightforward and budgeting easier.
Furthermore, Partisia Blockchain offers flexibility in fee payments by not limiting them to the native $MPC token. Users can choose to pay network fees using other supported tokens, enhancing convenience and accessibility.
This feature we will explore further in this article.
Solana achieves high speed and scalability through its Proof of History (PoH) timekeeping mechanism, combined with Proof of Stake (PoS) and Tower BFT for consensus. Its Sealevel parallel smart contract execution and Turbine block propagation further enhance its performance.
Solana’s software is designed to get out of the way and let the hardware operate at capacity, while most blockchain systems need to work on optimizing the software to improve their throughput. As such, Solana scales naturally with bandwidth, SSDs, and GPU cores. It is a good solution, but resource-intensive and expensive for node operators.
The fee structure consists of a base fee per transaction and priority fee that allows users to expedite transactions by paying more during high network congestion. This fee is calculated dynamically, based on current demand and desired confirmation time. Solana also has a “rent” fee, a withheld balance in each account to cover on-chain data storage costs.
Polygon distinguishes itself by offering a multi-layered approach to scaling Ethereum. Its PoS sidechain provides a parallel network for faster and cheaper transactions while still maintaining compatibility with Ethereum. The Polygon zkEVM leverages zero-knowledge rollups to bundle and verify transactions off-chain, further increasing scalability and reducing costs.
With the Polygon 2.0 (zkEVM validium) update, the network is set to become a network of ZK rollup chains, enabling interoperability and a wider range of applications while maintaining the security of the Ethereum mainnet.
While offering significant scalability advantages over Ethereum, Polygon has challenges with transaction finality due to its reliance on checkpoints on the Ethereum mainchain. In its PoS chain, transaction finality is not immediate. It requires a waiting period before the transaction is considered final after a checkpoint sent to Ethereum. This process is slow and introduces the risk of deep chain reorganizations, affecting the overall user experience.
To address this, Polygon implemented the “Deterministic Finality via Milestones”. Milestones, similar to Ethereum’s checkpoints, signal the finality of blocks in the validator layer allowing to achieve faster finality, minimizing the risk of following an incorrect chain for an extended period. While the milestones solution addresses the finality issue, Polygon’s PoS inherently comes with certain limitations regarding throughput. The number of validators in the network is limited, which can potentially bottleneck the transaction processing capacity. Moreover, while zkRollups offer scalability advantages, they also have their own throughput limitations due to the computational requirements of generating zero-knowledge proofs.
Speaking about fees, Polygon offers lower transaction fees than Ethereum. The fees on Polygon PoS, consist of a base fee and a priority fee to speed up processing, both paid in $MATIC. The base fee, which fluctuates depending on network congestion, is then burned. Polygon zkEVM, based on zero-knowledge rollups, also incurs gas fees paid in $MATIC to cover computational costs.
Stay tuned for Part 2 of the series where we will delve deeper into the zero-knowledge technologies and compare Partisia Blockchain with other blockchains.
ZUG, 9 JULY 2024. Partisia Blockchain grants the Digital Assets Technologies (DAT) AG. to launch a platform designed to tackle critical data security and privacy issues. Tailored for auditors and blockchain organizations, the DAT’s platform will be a robust mechanism for proving asset ownership while ensuring privacy and compliance.
Traditional data transmission methods are increasingly inadequate, often leading to security breaches and undermining transaction integrity. This vulnerability affects not only auditors and blockchain organizations but also poses significant risks to Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs), banks and end consumers. The Partisia Blockchain-supported DAT solution will address these challenges by offering a secure, privacy-preserving environment for transaction and asset verification.
The Partisia Blockchain-backed DAT platform will be designed to balance the need for transparent audits with the right to privacy in digital transactions. This approach ensures data can be shared and verified in a manner that meets modern privacy expectations and compliance regulations, making it essential for financial institutions and end-users.
The DAT solution will combine advanced technology with industry expertise to deliver features tailored for blockchain entities and financial auditors:
The Partisia Blockchain-supported offering’s security architecture prioritizes privacy and security without sacrificing usability, featuring:
The DAT’s solution will uphold strict standards, aligning with ISO 27001 and SOC 2 frameworks to deliver a robust compliance posture. This suite of features ensures that the offering meets today’s market and regulatory requirements and can adapt and scale to future demands.
About Partisia Blockchain: Partisia Blockchain brings unparalleled opportunities by empowering privacy-preserving, interoperable and sustainable innovation for fairness and transparency. It fuels the most secure and efficient networks to solve global problems. Distilled with 35 years of rigorous research, Partisia Blockchain future-proofs solutions, solves tomorrow’s challenges by powering fair, secure, distribution of benefits. While preserving privacy and confidentiality, it brings accountable, transparent and decentralized governance. Learn more: www.PartisiaBlockchain.com
About Digital Assets Technologies (DAT) AG.: Digital Assets Technologies (DAT) AG offers secure, privacy-focused SaaS solutions for CPAs, financial auditors and digital asset companies. Created by seasoned blockchain experts, the platform revolutionizes accounting, financial audits and travel rule compliance with top-tier security and regulatory adherence. Learn more: https://dat.ag
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