A plain-English walk through what Canton is, why privacy-by-default matters for regulated finance, and how the token economy ties it together.
Canton Network is a network of networks: a privacy-first blockchain built for regulated finance. Unlike most public chains, where every transaction is visible to everyone, Canton lets participants share only what's strictly necessary, to only the parties who need to see it.
This primer walks through the moving parts: the protocol, the actors (validators, super validators, app providers), the Canton Coin economy, and what public network data can and cannot show about who uses it.
01The problem Canton was built to solve
Traditional public blockchains optimize for transparency: every balance, every transaction and every smart-contract call is public record. That works for censorship-resistant money, but it breaks down for a bank or custodian that cannot expose client positions and counterparties to the open internet.
A private, permissioned ledger solves the privacy problem but creates another: each ledger is an island, and assets on one cannot settle directly against assets on another.
Canton's answer is sub-transaction privacy on a shared network. Every party lives on a validator node: an institution can run its own node or use a node-as-a-service provider, and wallets and apps can host their users' parties. One transaction can involve parties on many nodes, and each node receives only the parts its parties are entitled to see.
Privacy on Canton comes from the protocol, not from a separate private chain: the Global Synchronizer orders and delivers encrypted messages it cannot read.
02How the network is structured
There are three actor tiers on Canton MainNet:
Validators run the nodes that host parties: they store their parties' contracts, submit their transactions and confirm the ones they take part in. Beyond a free base allowance, a validator pays for its traffic by burning Canton Coin.
Super Validators (SVs) operate the Global Synchronizer, the shared service that orders encrypted transaction messages between validators and collects their confirmations. They also vote on changes to the network: on 28 Sep 2026 there were 13, and a change needed 9 of their votes.
Featured apps are apps whose provider party holds a featured app right, granted by a super validator vote. Only featured apps earn app rewards, and together they get the largest share of Canton Coin issuance, based on the activity their apps generate.
03Sub-transaction privacy in practice
The headline feature. In a single Canton transaction that settles, say, a delivery-vs-payment trade between a broker, a custodian, and a central depository, each party sees only the sub-transaction they're part of. The broker doesn't see the custodian's balance. The depository doesn't see the cash leg's settlement instructions.
Technically, Canton splits a transaction into views and sends each node only the views its parties are entitled to see, based on the stakeholders of each Daml contract. The synchronizer that orders these messages sees them encrypted. Your node never receives the parts of a transaction your parties are not entitled to see.
“Each party sees only the sub-transaction it is part of.”
04The Canton Coin economy
Canton Coin (CC) is the native utility token. Validators burn CC to buy the traffic their transactions use on the Global Synchronizer, and new CC is minted every round as rewards. Holding CC gives no vote.
In the current step of the issuance schedule (years 1.5 to 5 after MainNet launch), rewards are split:
62% to featured apps, based on the activity their apps generate.
18% to validators, who since 30 Apr 2026 (CIP-0096) earn nothing just for staying online.
20% to super validators, shared according to their weight.
CIP-0082 takes 5% of every mint, pro rata from all three streams, for the Canton Development Fund, governed by the Canton Foundation. That makes the effective shares about 58.9%, 17.1% and 19%. There is no 10% Foundation pool.
Featured apps get the largest share, but the right is gated: since CIP-0116 (approved 20 May 2026), an app must lock 5,000,000 CC per party (25,000,000 CC for asset issuers) before the vote. The lock itself earns nothing.
Burning and minting are separate flows: CC spent on traffic is destroyed, rewards are newly minted each round, and the total supply changes by the difference.
05Who is actually using it
Canton is private by design. Public network data shows who runs the network, which apps are featured and how Canton Coin moves, not which institutions trade with each other or how much. What can be checked:
Super validators. On 28 Sep 2026 the on-chain list had 13, among them Digital Asset (two nodes), Cumberland (two nodes), Tradeweb Markets and the Global Synchronizer Foundation. The full list is on CCTools Governance.
Milestone programs. Some institutions join through super validator programs approved as CIPs, with rewards held in escrow until each milestone is confirmed. CIP-0115 (approved 27 Apr 2026) states that Société Générale already runs Canton validators and has issued a tokenized bond on Canton.
Featured apps. Which apps hold a featured app right, and what they earn, is public on Scan and on CCTools Apps.
FAQ
Is Canton a Layer 2 of Ethereum?
No. Canton is its own network, built on the Daml smart-contract language and the Canton protocol. It's not an Ethereum L2, not an app-chain, and not a sidechain.
Can I buy Canton Coin today?
CC trades on centralized exchanges and on Canton-native venues. Get CC on CCTools lists the venues we track, with exchange listings and prices from CoinGecko. Nothing here is a recommendation to buy.
How do I become a Featured App?
Apply through the Canton Foundation's Featured App request form. Since CIP-0116 (approved 20 May 2026), the app must also lock 5,000,000 CC per party (25,000,000 CC for asset issuers) before the super validators vote, and keep it locked to keep the status. A CCTools listing is not required.
How is Canton different from a private, permissioned ledger?
A private ledger keeps data private by keeping everyone else out, so each one becomes an island. Canton is one shared network: a single transaction can span parties hosted on different nodes, with per-party privacy enforced by the protocol itself, not by a bridge.
Further reading
Overview of the network, its ecosystem and how to connect a validator.
Key concepts, architecture and Canton Coin, plus app development with Daml.
Super validators, their votes and governance proposals, from public network data.
Apps that hold a featured app right, with the rewards they earned.