Zircuit
9 known investors
Zircuit provides institutional-grade security and custody services with insured vaults for safeguarding digital assets at scale.
Also known as Zircuit Finance · ZircuitL2
Founders & leadership
Investors · 9
Also in the syndicate · 1
Company profile
researched Aug 2026Zircuit operates a fully EVM-compatible zero-knowledge rollup on Ethereum built around what the company calls Sequencer-Level Security (SLS), an approach that uses automated AI techniques at the sequencer to identify potentially malicious transactions and smart contract exploits before they are included. The chain is based on Ethereum's OP Stack combined with zero-knowledge proof technology, and is presented as a hybrid architecture intended to combine low cost and speed with security. Because the rollup is EVM-compatible, existing Ethereum applications and tooling such as MetaMask and Foundry can be used without modification.
On top of the network, Zircuit runs consumer- and institution-facing financial products. Zircuit Finance offers vaults for depositing BTC, ETH and dollar stablecoins, sourcing yield from strategies run with firms including FalconX, Fidelity Investments, Forteus and Monarq, alongside allocations to protocols such as Morpho and WisdomTree. The Zircuit Liquidity Hub lets users stake liquid staking tokens (LSTs) and liquid restaking tokens (LRTs) and earn staking rewards; the company has stated an ambition to become a central liquidity hub for restaked assets (ETH, BTC, LSTs and LRTs). Supporting infrastructure includes a native bridge, a fast bridge via Rhino, a block explorer, developer documentation, an ecosystem directory covering DeFi, social, infrastructure, wallet, AI and security projects, and a bug bounty program.
Founding story
According to a co-founder interview, Zircuit has four co-founders. Martin Derka and Jan are the technical co-founders; both hold PhDs from the University of Waterloo in Canada and previously worked at a leading smart contract security audit firm, with 10-15 years of combined software engineering experience. Angel Xu and Krishna lead the business side; Krishna has been in the crypto industry since 2016 and Angel previously founded a startup and led investments. The team members met through prior work. Most of Zircuit's R&D was self-funded until the product was complete, and outside fundraising began only after the rollup launched.
Business model
Zircuit combines Layer 2 network infrastructure with financial products: it operates a ZK rollup used by third-party applications and developers, and offers deposit-based yield vaults (Zircuit Finance) and a staking Liquidity Hub for LSTs and LRTs. Growth programs such as Build to Earn and staking incentives are used to attract developers and deposits.
Traction
At the time of the July 2024 mainnet round announcement, Zircuit cited over $2.9 billion in staked assets (a parallel version of the release cited over $2.1 billion). The company's site states its infrastructure has protected over $3 billion in assets and cites an eight-year track record. The Zircuit Finance app reported approximately $1.47 million in assets under management with USDC and USDT vault APYs of roughly 8.05% and 8.11%.
Latest developments
Zircuit has launched Zircuit Finance, offering vaults advertising 8-11% APY on USDC and USDT with yield sourced from institutional firms including FalconX, Fidelity Investments, Forteus and Monarq, plus strategies via Morpho and WisdomTree, alongside the Zircuit Liquidity Hub for LST and LRT staking.
▸Full profile — market position, technology, go-to-market, geography, history
Market position
Zircuit positions itself among Ethereum Layer 2 ZK rollups, differentiating on security rather than throughput alone, and as a hub for restaked assets in the liquid restaking segment. Backers cited by the company include Dragonfly, Pantera and YZiLabs, with Binance Labs and others participating in its mainnet round.
The company's stated differentiator is security applied at the sequencer level using AI-based detection of malicious activity, rather than relying solely on post-hoc measures, combined with full EVM compatibility. It also emphasizes a founding team of PhDs and smart contract auditing veterans and Ethereum Foundation-recognized research.
Technology
Zircuit is a ZK rollup built on Ethereum's OP Stack combined with zero-knowledge proofs and parallelized circuits. Its distinguishing component is Sequencer-Level Security (SLS), which applies built-in automated AI techniques at the sequencer to detect risky or malicious transactions and smart contract exploits before execution. The team has also researched rollup data compression, reporting that Zircuit's compression algorithm saves roughly 40% in data costs. Zircuit Finance smart contracts have been audited by Zenith and Quantstamp.
Go-to-market
Zircuit uses incentive-driven programs including Build to Earn for developers, staking campaigns, a referral code system in the Zircuit Finance app, a bug bounty program, and partnerships and co-marketing such as a collaboration with Binance Web3 Wallet. It also pursues cross-chain outreach to other ecosystems such as Solana.
Developers and dApps deploying on an EVM-compatible L2; crypto-native retail and institutional depositors seeking yield on BTC, ETH and stablecoins; and holders of liquid staking and restaking tokens.
Geography
The July 2024 funding announcement was datelined George Town, Cayman Islands.
History
The team began building the L2 network in 2022. Some co-founders received Ethereum Foundation grants for research into rollup security and rollup data compression, though the company states it did not receive direct Ethereum Foundation funding itself. In July 2024 Zircuit announced a mainnet funding round with participation from Binance Labs, Mirana Ventures and others, with Mainnet Phase 1 set to launch in the following weeks. By late 2024 the company was running Build to Earn and staking incentive programs and pursuing cross-ecosystem collaborations. It subsequently launched Zircuit Finance vaults and the Zircuit Liquidity Hub.
Compiled by commissioned research from 8 cited public sources — announcements, filings, and press listed under research sources below.
Key figures
latest reportedCompany-reported or press-reported figures, each dated to when it was claimed — not independently audited.
Competitors · 10
by search overlap
Companies competing with Zircuit for the same Google search keywords, organic and paid, via search-intersection analysis.
Timeline · 4
launches, deals, and filingsZircuit Finance offers vaults for BTC, ETH and dollar deposits advertising 8-11% APY on USDC and USDT, with yield sourced from institutional firms including FalconX, Fidelity Investments, Forteus and Monarq, and smart contracts audited by Zenith and Quantstamp.
A Zircuit collaboration event with Binance Web3 Wallet was underway alongside the launch of an Eigen Fairdrop event.
Zircuit announced a mainnet funding round with participation from Binance Labs, Mirana Ventures, Amber Group, Selini, Robot Ventures, Nomad Capital, Borderless Capital and angel investors including founders of Renzo, EtherFi, Pendle, Parallel, LayerZero, Axelar, F2Pool, Nonce, KelpDAO, ETHGlobal and Maelstrom. No amount was disclosed.
At the time of the July 2024 funding announcement, Zircuit stated its Mainnet Phase 1 was set to launch in the coming weeks.
Dated company events from announcements, filings, and press; legal rows summarize public dockets and regulator releases.
In the news
▸Research sources · 8
primary sources listed
- Zircuitzircuit.com · web
8 public sources were cited for this profile; the first-party ones are listed here.
Frequently asked questions
- What does Zircuit do?
- Zircuit is an EVM-compatible ZK rollup with AI-driven sequencer-level security that also runs institutional-grade onchain yield vaults.
- Who founded Zircuit?
- Zircuit was founded by Martin Derka, Angel X..
- Who are Zircuit's investors?
- Zircuit's investors include BitDAO, Borderless Venture, Mantle Network, Pantera Capital, Serafund, Binance Labs, Mirana Ventures, Robot Ventures.