What Hinkal does

Hinkal is a zero-knowledge privacy protocol enabling confidential stablecoin transactions on public blockchains while preserving public, auditable settlement. The company operates a shared privacy pool architecture (branded "EigenLayer for Privacy") deployed across seven networks — Ethereum, Solana, Tron, Polygon, Arbitrum, Base, and BNB Smart Chain — with Chainalysis KYT screening applied at the deposit layer to block flagged wallets before funds enter the pool. ZK proof generation is supported by Succinct's SP1 Hypercube, and the protocol is compatible with Polygon CDK's validium privacy upgrade. To date, Hinkal has processed $400M+ in private on-chain volume and completed six independent security audits.

The product portfolio consists of three surfaces built on the same core protocol: Hinkal Pay (consumer-facing confidential stablecoin transfers at pay.hinkal.io), the Confidential Payments SDK (a JavaScript toolkit distributed via npm as @hinkal/common for embedding privacy into third-party applications), and Hinkal Wallet (a multichain wallet shielding balances and transaction history). Revenue is derived from usage-based SDK/API licensing and consumer transaction fees, with selective-disclosure viewing keys enabling regulatory and audit access on demand. Hinkal targets four segments — institutional finance and enterprise treasuries, DeFi protocols and payment rails, businesses with confidential payment needs, and individual cryptocurrency users — and has secured flagship integrations with Polygon (native private USDC/USDT in the Polygon wallet) and Vault (private stablecoin transactions inside an institutional custody platform). The company was founded in 2023, is headquartered in Stanford, United States, and has raised approximately $5.5M across two priced rounds, with a $70M valuation at its April 2024 strategic financing led by SALT Fund.

Name

Hinkal

Legal name

Hinkal

Website

https://hinkal.pro

Company type

Private

Founded year

2023

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Hinkal is a zero-knowledge privacy protocol enabling confidential stablecoin transactions across seven public blockchains for institutions, DeFi protocols, and businesses. It offers Hinkal Pay, the Confidential Payments SDK, and Hinkal Wallet, with built-in Chainalysis KYT compliance.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Blockchain Privacy Protocol

NAICS

Financial Transactions Processing, Reserve, and Clearinghouse Activities (52232)

SIC

Finance Services (6199)

akta.pro primary industry

Decentralized Identity (DID) & Identity Wallets (DID methods, DIDComm, identity agents) (FSAPACAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Compliance Identity & KYC/KYB for Wallets (on-chain identity, reusable KYC, travel rule tooling) (FSAPACAL), Smart Contract Wallets & Account Abstraction (FSADACAF), Customer Permissioning & Consent Management (OAuth, scopes, revocation) (FSAGACAC)

Keywords

• Zero-knowledge privacy protocol
• Confidential stablecoin payments
• Blockchain privacy SDK
• Multichain private wallet
• Institutional DeFi privacy

Headquarters

HQ city

Stanford

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. SDK / API Licensing: The Confidential Payments SDK is offered to enterprise teams and developers for embedding private settlement, payouts, and treasury flows into their products. Revenue is derived from SDK integration fees or usage-based fees tied to transaction volume processed through the privacy layer.
2. Hinkal Pay Consumer Transactions: End-to-end confidential stablecoin transfers for individuals and teams via Hinkal Pay application, likely generating revenue through transaction fees on private transfers.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Hinkal operates a zero-knowledge privacy protocol that enables confidential stablecoin transfers on public blockchains, keeping sender, recipient, and amount private while settlement remains public, auditable, and compliant. It packages this protocol into three products: Hinkal Pay for consumer confidential stablecoin transfers, the Confidential Payments SDK (JavaScript) for developers and enterprises to embed privacy into their own products, and Hinkal Wallet for multichain shielded balances and private DeFi execution. Compliance is enforced through built-in Chainalysis KYT screening at the deposit layer and viewing-key-based selective disclosure.

Product overview

Hinkal is a zero-knowledge privacy protocol offering a unified platform with three distinct products built on its core ZK technology. The portfolio consists of Hinkal Pay (end-to-end confidential settlement for individuals and businesses), the Confidential Payments SDK (developer toolkit for embedding privacy into products), and Hinkal Wallet (consumer-facing multichain private wallet). All three products leverage zero-knowledge proofs to keep wallets, amounts, and counterparties private while maintaining public, auditable, and compliant settlements across supported blockchain networks.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Hinkal Pay: End-to-end confidential settlements that keep sender, recipient, and amount private across Solana, TRON, Ethereum and major EVM networks.
• Confidential Payments SDK
• Hinkal Wallet

Products and services

• Hinkal Pay End-to-end confidential stablecoin transfer application accessible via web that enables individuals and teams to send and receive stablecoins privately across Ethereum, Solana, Tron, and major EVM networks without changing wallets, chains, or stablecoins. Settlement remains public, auditable, and compliant.
• Confidential Payments SDK JavaScript SDK (@hinkal/common) distributed via npm that enables developers and enterprise teams to embed private settlement, payouts, and treasury flows into their own applications on Ethereum, Solana, and major EVM chains without changing custody, wallets, or payment rails. Documentation is provided at the Hinkal Gitbook.
• Hinkal Wallet Multichain wallet that shields balances and transaction history from public view while enabling users to perform swaps, transfers, and DeFi execution through a private account.

Quantifiable outcome

• $400M+ private on-chain volume processed
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration8 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.

• VaultcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 18 June 2026Vault partnered with Hinkal to integrate private stablecoin transactions into its institutional custody platform. The partnership addresses privacy concerns as the $315 billion stablecoin market grows, using Hinkal's ZK technology to allow verified transactions without exposing amounts, balances, or counterparties on public blockchains.
• PolygonflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 15 May 2026Polygon integrated Hinkal's zero-knowledge privacy technology into its official wallet, launching private stablecoin payments (USDC and USDT) on the Polygon network. Every private transaction includes built-in KYT screening conducted by Hinkal before execution. The partnership positions Hinkal as Polygon's native privacy solution.
• ChainalysiscoreTechnology or IntegrationHinkal integrates Chainalysis KYT (Know Your Transaction) screening at the deposit layer, blocking flagged wallets and preventing tainted funds from entering the privacy pool. This integration is a core compliance feature enabling regulatory-grade privacy.
• Polygon CDK (Privacy Upgrade)coreTechnology or IntegrationPolygon CDK's privacy upgrade enables institutions to build private chains using a validium configuration powered by Succinct's SP1 Hypercube. Hinkal's privacy protocol integrates with this infrastructure, enabling ZK-shielded stablecoin transactions.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Direct peers

• Aztec Network: Aztec is a ZK-rollup focused on programmable privacy for Ethereum DeFi. It competes most directly with Hinkal by offering private smart-contract execution and shielded assets on Ethereum.
• Railgun: Railgun is a privacy protocol that uses ZK proofs to shield wallet balances and transaction history on Ethereum DeFi. It is highly comparable to Hinkal's privacy pool architecture and target use cases.
• Panther Protocol: Panther offers privacy-preserving transactions and compliance features for DeFi users via ZK proofs, overlapping directly with Hinkal's mix of shielded transfers and selective disclosure.
• Aleo: Aleo is a privacy-focused L1 using ZK proofs for confidential smart contracts and transactions. It competes for the same institutional and developer demand that Hinkal targets with its privacy layer.
• Iron Fish: Iron Fish is a privacy-focused L1 using ZK proofs to hide transaction details. It represents the alternative architectural approach to Hinkal's chain-agnostic overlay for private payments.
• Penumbra: Penumbra is a privacy-preserving Cosmos-zone providing shielded pools and private trading. It targets the same shielded-asset use cases as Hinkal across a multi-chain DeFi ecosystem.
• Manta Network: Manta is a ZK-based privacy platform offering private swaps and on-chain compliance. It is closely comparable to Hinkal's privacy-for-DeFi positioning and stablecoin shielding capabilities.
• Secret Network: Secret Network is a privacy-focused smart-contract platform with encrypted inputs, outputs, and state. It addresses overlapping developer and institutional demand for confidential DeFi execution.

Broad incumbents

• StarkWare: StarkWare builds ZK-rollup infrastructure (Starknet) used by many privacy-adjacent applications. It competes indirectly by providing the scaling and ZK primitives that power competing privacy protocols.
• zkSync: zkSync is a ZK-rollup ecosystem exploring native privacy features and account abstraction. It is an indirect competitor via its ZK stack and the privacy-preserving applications built on it.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors18 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Hinkal