# Aleo

Canonical page: https://technooptimist.io/companies/aleo
Aleo is a blockchain where transactions are private by default: programs run on the user's device and the chain only checks a zero-knowledge proof. Circle's USDCx and Paxos Labs' USAD give it private dollar payments.

## In brief

- Mainnet live since Sept 18, 2024, after a $200M Series B in 2022 at a $1.45B valuation.
- Hosts two private, compliance-aware dollar stablecoins: Circle's USDCx and Paxos Labs' USAD.
- Toku launched private stablecoin payroll on Aleo in Jan 2026.

## Facts

- Headquarters: US
- Status: private
- Raised: $200M
- Website: https://aleo.org
- Frontiers: [Crypto](https://technooptimist.io/crypto.md) (Privacy chains)

## Programs

- [Aleo network](https://technooptimist.io/crypto/aleo-mainnet.md) (Crypto): Deploy. Mainnet since Sept 2024; private stablecoins USDCx (Circle) and USAD (Paxos Labs) live in 2026.

## Technical approach

- **Off-chain execution: Compute locally, prove on-chain**: Programs run off-chain; the network receives a small proof that the rules were followed, not the inputs themselves.
- **Selective disclosure: Private, but auditable**: Amounts, addresses and balances are encrypted, yet users can reveal specific transactions to an auditor or regulator.
- **Proof-of-succinct-work: Paying for faster provers**: Provers earn rewards by solving puzzles that are themselves proof computations, pushing GPU proving hardware forward.

## Open problems

- **Usage still small** (open): Private stablecoins and payroll are live but early; the flagship payroll use only started in Jan 2026.
- **Regulation of private money** (active research): Aleo must show regulators that encrypted payments can still meet anti-money-laundering rules; it hired a former CIA analyst as policy head in 2026.

## Latest updates

- **21 Jul 2026**: Aleo details private payroll on USAD: Toku pays salaries in stablecoins with amounts hidden on-chain. Toku, which has processed over $1B of token payroll, launched fully private stablecoin payroll on USAD in January 2026. ([our story](https://technooptimist.io/stories/aleo-details-private-payroll-on-usad-toku-pays-salaries-in-stablecoins-260b02f1.md) · [original source](https://aleo.org/post/usad-case-study/))
- **11 Feb 2026**: Paxos Labs launches USAD, a privacy-preserving dollar stablecoin, on Aleo mainnet. USAD runs on Paxos' issuance infrastructure and targets payroll, business payments and DeFi that are hard to run on fully transparent chains. ([our story](https://technooptimist.io/stories/paxos-labs-launches-usad-a-privacy-preserving-dollar-stablecoin-on-aleo-e4deafcb.md) · [original source](https://www.theblock.co/post/389101/privacy-preserving-usad-stablecoin-launches-aleo-layer-1-mainnet-paxos-partnership))
- **18 Sep 2024**: Aleo mainnet goes live: a programmable blockchain with private state, after four testnets. Aleo launched its layer-1 network combining zero-knowledge proofs with public and private state. ([our story](https://technooptimist.io/stories/aleo-mainnet-goes-live-a-programmable-blockchain-with-private-state-4bfd1ba6.md) · [original source](https://aleo.org/post/announcing-aleo-mainnet/))

## Funding

| Date | Round | Amount | Post-money | Leads |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Feb 2022 | Series B | $200M | $1.4B | Kora Management, SoftBank Vision Fund 2 |

## Partners, customers and investors

- Circle (partner): USDCx on Aleo: private USDC backed 1:1 by USDC in Circle's xReserve contract on Ethereum.
- Paxos Labs (partner): Issues USAD, a private stablecoin backed by Paxos' USDG reserves (Feb 2026).
- Toku (customer): Built private stablecoin payroll on USAD and Aleo (Jan 2026).

## People

- Howard Wu, Founder; co-author of the Zexe paper
- Leena Im, COO

---

The Techno Optimist tracks every frontier of technology, program by program: https://technooptimist.io/ (a Markdown version of any page: add .md to its URL; site map for agents: https://technooptimist.io/llms.txt).
Data API (JSON, realtime stream): https://technooptimist.io/developers. People read 5 pages free, then Reader $10/month; these Markdown pages are open to agents.