Privacy DeFi has been stuck in a vicious cycle. Either the technical approach is too single-minded, struggling with complex scenarios; or compatibility is poor, leading to a terrible user experience; or compliance cannot be guaranteed, making institutional funds hesitant to enter. For a long time, this sector has not found a true breakthrough.

But the emergence of Hedger seems to have opened a crack in this deadlock.

Previous privacy solutions mainly relied on zero-knowledge proofs as the sole approach. It sounds impressive, but in practical applications, it falls apart—performance can't keep up, and functionality is limited. Simple transfers are fine, but when it comes to complex scenarios like lending or derivatives trading, it completely fails. Hedger changes the approach by combining homomorphic encryption with zero-knowledge proofs, walking on two legs. This makes the tech stack more complete and naturally capable of handling more scenarios. From basic transfers to complex trades, it can provide stable privacy protection. This level of comprehensiveness is indeed rare among similar products.

More importantly, compatibility. Imagine the size of the EVM ecosystem—the entire toolchain and asset pool of Ethereum. Hedger directly adapts to EVM, so developers don't need to relearn new systems, and users don't have to switch wallets or chains. Lowering the barrier means directly connecting to a huge existing market. This is more effective than any marketing.

Then there's compliance, a point that many institutions have been struggling with. Hedger has designed an auditable mechanism from the ground up, protecting privacy while complying with regulatory frameworks. Institutional funds have always hesitated to touch privacy DeFi mainly due to compliance risks. Now that this issue is addressed, just imagine what will happen when institutional funds truly enter the space—the entire sector will experience a qualitative leap.

In short, everyone used to focus on point solutions, with some link always getting stuck. Now, a product has proven that only by simultaneously addressing technology, compatibility, and compliance can there be a real breakthrough. Whether privacy DeFi can break out of the circle depends on the next six months.