Cardano Privacy Chain Midnight Slated for Late March Launch, Says Hoskinson
Input Output Global founder Charles Hoskinson announced on Feb. 11, 2026 that Midnight — the long-awaited privacy-focused partner chain for Cardano — is scheduled to go live in the final week of March. The project is billed as a privacy layer offering shielded transactions and privacy-preserving smart contract capabilities, running alongside Cardano rather than altering its base layer.
The launch could broaden Cardano’s use cases, attracting privacy-centric apps, NFT projects and decentralized finance activity while increasing ADA utility across the ecosystem. Market and regulatory observers will watch closely: privacy tech can spur adoption but also invites scrutiny around compliance. IOG and ecosystem partners will need to demonstrate robust auditing, wallet support and clear compliance pathways as Midnight moves from testnets to mainnet.