Midnight Taps Blockdaemon, Shielded to Run Federated Nodes Ahead of March Mainnet

The Midnight Foundation has added Blockdaemon and Shielded Technologies as federated node operators for the Midnight Network, increasing its early operator set to 4 because the challenge prepares for mainnet. 

The two be part of Google Cloud and AlphaTON Capital, which Midnight has already named as launch companions supporting the community’s preliminary infrastructure layer.

This is a component of Midnight’s ‘rational privacy’ method, utilizing zero-knowledge systems and selective disclosure. It’s more and more a prerequisite for regulated on-chain markets, the place individuals want verifiability and auditability with out placing delicate knowledge on a public ledger.

Mainnet is scheduled to go reside on the finish of March 2026, with the community anticipated to transfer past the federated mannequin later in 2026.

Federated Node Operators Explained

According to the Midnight Foundation, mainnet will begin with a small set of federated node operators – separate organizations that collectively function the protocol underneath express guidelines for participation and coordination. The Foundation frames this as a launch-stage construction designed to prioritize operational stability, then transition towards a extra decentralized setup over time.

In follow, these operators are accountable for operating the core node software program that enforces protocol guidelines and maintains the community’s peer-to-peer layer. Midnight’s own documentation describes the node because the infrastructure element that implements protocol logic and manages networking, with the broader structure supposed to help each permissioned and trustless participation.

Midnight additionally notes that operators are already current on its pre-production community, and that bringing them into mainnet is supposed to present an enterprise-grade basis for early reside functions whereas the decentralization roadmap continues by 2026. 

Why Is This Important for Institutions?

Public blockchains make exercise legible by default, and that may spill delicate particulars like counterparties, positions, pricing logic, and consumer identifiers into an immutable report that anybody can analyze. 

This is the place zero-knowledge techniques step in. A zero-knowledge proof lets one celebration show a press release is legitimate with out revealing the underlying info. In quick, ‘show what’s vital, maintain the remainder non-public.’ 

This is how Midnight gives selective disclosure, revealing solely particular attributes when wanted (for instance, eligibility checks) whereas maintaining different knowledge confidential. It’s an method designed to maintain up in environments with authorized and operational disclosure necessities.

Midnight describes this as ‘rational privateness,’ that means privateness that’s contextual slightly than absolute. Under the hood, it’s constructed round zero-knowledge good contracts, with a public governance token (NIGHT) and a shielded useful resource (DUST) used for execution.

What Each Launch Operator Brings

• Blockdaemon sells node and staking infrastructure to massive purchasers, and markets itself as securing greater than $110 billion in digital property for 400+ establishments. Midnight is framing Blockdaemon’s node as a means to give banks, custodians, and funds a privacy-capable community they’ll function and monitor utilizing acquainted operational requirements.
• Shielded Technologies describes itself as an Input Output (IO) spinout and Midnight’s core know-how accomplice, that means it’s already deep within the cryptography and engineering that underpins Midnight’s privateness mannequin. Operating a federated node is successfully Shielded taking up manufacturing duty for the infrastructure it’s been serving to to design.
• Google Cloud is positioned extra as a safety and reliability accomplice. Midnight says Google Cloud’s Mandiant unit will help menace monitoring and incident response, and that Midnight’s ZK stack will leverage Google Cloud Confidential Computing to shield delicate knowledge whereas it’s being processed.
• AlphaTON Capital provides distribution and Telegram-adjacent attain. AlphaTON is listed on Nasdaq (ATON), and the corporate has publicly mentioned Midnight engaged it to present one of the founding nodes and develop software program integrating Midnight’s privateness layer with Telegram and the TON ecosystem. 

What Comes Next?

Midnight has now put a transparent clock on its rollout. On February 17, 2026, the Midnight Foundation introduced Blockdaemon and Shielded Technologies as federated node operators, increasing the named launch roster to 4 alongside Google Cloud and AlphaTON Capital.

A February 18 recap tied that operator buildout straight to launch sequencing, reiterating that Midnight mainnet will go reside on the finish of March 2026 as half of its Kūkolu ‘federated mainnet’ section.

In the run-up, Midnight says it should publish extra technical readiness updates and additional particulars on node companions within the weeks earlier than genesis. For context on scope, AlphaTON’s node settlement disclosures describe the launch set as one of ten founding Midnight nodes, implying extra operators are nonetheless to be named. After launch, the Foundation has described the federated mannequin as a bridge towards community-driven block manufacturing later in 2026. 

A Market Signal

The rising operator roster is an indication Midnight is prioritizing institutional-grade reliability at launch. Midnight has described mainnet as beginning with federated node operators that run the protocol underneath express participation guidelines, with a acknowledged intent to transition away from that construction over time.

Of course, privateness that may survive compliance scrutiny relies upon as a lot on accountable infrastructure because it does on cryptography and selective disclosure.

Watch out for extra operator additions, the promised technical readiness updates forward of the end-of-March 2026 mainnet launch, and the primary actual deployments.

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