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Dusk

DUSK · Field entry
PrivacyReal-world assetsPrivacy

A layer-1 blockchain for regulated assets with optional shielded transfers

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$0.11245.37%Snapshot · October 20, 2026 · updates live
Market cap
$68.56M
24h volume
$6.51M
Rank
#357
Circulating
610.18M DUSK
Max supply
1.00B DUSK
All-time high
$1.09 December 29, 2021

DUSK price chart

7-day snapshot. Chart data from CoinGecko.

What is Dusk?

Dusk is a proof-of-stake blockchain aimed at issuing and trading regulated financial assets, such as tokenized shares, on a public network. It offers two ways to move value: a transparent account model and a shielded model that uses zero-knowledge proofs to hide amounts and parties. DUSK pays network fees and is staked to secure the chain.

Utility Lens

What Dusk actually does

Provides a public blockchain where regulated financial assets can be issued and settled, with privacy for sensitive details and disclosure to auditors when required.

Real-world usage
earlyThe mainnet is live and DUSK is staked and traded, but on-chain issuance of regulated securities is still being built out.
Token necessity
essentialDUSK pays every transaction fee and is the stake that secures consensus.
Decentralization
moderateAnyone can stake 1,000 DUSK to help run consensus, but development is led by one core team and 10% of every block reward goes to a development fund.
Track record
developingMainnet launched in January 2025 after what the team called six years of development; shielded Phoenix transactions are temporarily paused pending an upgrade.

How we rate

What it’s used for

Today most activity is DUSK transfers and staking on the mainnet that launched in January 2025. Dusk's main business partner is NPEX, a Dutch licensed trading venue, with which it plans to issue and trade regulated securities on-chain. An Ethereum-compatible execution layer, DuskEVM, is live on public testnet but not yet on mainnet.

Role of the DUSK token:

gasstaking security

Evidence of real use

  • Dusk's mainnet produced its first immutable block on January 7, 2025, after a rollout that began in December 2024. Source
  • Dusk says it signed a commercial agreement in March 2024 with NPEX, a Dutch Multilateral Trading Facility, so regulated financial instruments can be issued, traded and tokenized on Dusk. Source
  • Dusk's docs say DuskEVM is live on its public testnet, not yet on mainnet. Source

Privacy: what’s hidden, what isn’t

Privacy model
optional (user chooses shielded/private)
What it hides
In Phoenix shielded transfers: the amount, which notes are spent, and the sender (from everyone but the receiver).
What stays visible
All Moonlight transactions, including sender, recipient and amount; the fact that a Phoenix transaction happened; fees; and timing.
Reality check
Privacy is optional, and new Phoenix transactions are paused as of October 2026, so most current activity is public. Viewing keys let holders reveal activity to auditors, which reflects Dusk's focus on regulated finance rather than anonymity.

Privacy coins, explained

How Dusk works

Dusk's base layer, DuskDS, handles consensus, settlement and data. It supports two transaction models side by side. Moonlight works like a normal account: balances, senders, recipients and amounts are all public, which suits flows that must be visible for reporting. Phoenix stores value as encrypted notes and uses zero-knowledge proofs to show a spend is valid without revealing the amount or which notes moved, and the sender is hidden from everyone except the receiver.

Phoenix is designed for compliance as well as privacy. Holders can share a viewing key with an auditor or regulator so that specific activity can be checked when the law requires it. As of October 2026, Dusk's documentation says new Phoenix transactions are temporarily paused while a follow-up upgrade is prepared, though the model has not been retired and existing shielded state remains part of the chain.

DUSK secures the network through proof-of-stake, with a minimum stake of 1,000 DUSK. Each block reward combines newly issued DUSK and that block's fees; the block producer gets most of it, two validation committees get smaller shares, and 10% goes to a development fund. Dusk is also adding DuskEVM, an Ethereum-compatible layer that uses DUSK for gas and settles back to DuskDS.

Key moments

  1. 2020Dusk becomes a shareholder in NPEX, a Dutch stock exchange.
  2. 2024Dusk and NPEX sign a commercial agreement in March; the mainnet rollout begins on December 20.
  3. 2025Mainnet produces its first immutable block on January 7, and Binance.US lists DUSK in October.
  4. 2026DuskEVM runs on public testnet, and new Phoenix shielded transactions are paused pending an upgrade.

Supply

DUSK has a maximum supply of 1 billion. Half, 500 million, existed at the start; the other 500 million is being released gradually over 36 years to pay stakers, with the emission rate halving every four years. Any part of a block reward that is not distributed is burned.

Risks to understand

  • Shielded Phoenix transfers are paused as of October 2026, so the network's privacy features are not fully available today.
  • The plan to bring regulated securities on-chain depends on partners like NPEX and on regulators, and timelines can slip.
  • DUSK on Ethereum or BNB Chain must be migrated to the native chain to stake, and using the wrong network can lose funds.
  • From July 10, 2027, EU rules bar crypto service providers from offering accounts that allow transactions to be anonymized, which could affect how platforms treat shielded transfers.
  • New issuance continues for decades, adding supply over time.

Dusk FAQ

Is Dusk a privacy coin?

Partly. Dusk offers optional shielded transfers, but it also has fully public transfers and is designed so holders can reveal activity to auditors when regulation requires.

What is the difference between Phoenix and Moonlight?

Moonlight is the public account model, with visible balances and transfers. Phoenix is the shielded model that uses zero-knowledge proofs to hide amounts and parties.

What is NPEX?

NPEX is a Dutch trading venue licensed as a Multilateral Trading Facility. Dusk says the two are working together to issue and trade regulated securities on Dusk.

Sources

  1. Dusk mainnet rollout — Dusk Network
  2. Dusk and NPEX commercial partnership — Dusk Network
  3. DuskDS transaction models — Dusk Docs
  4. Tokenomics — Dusk Docs
  5. DuskEVM — Dusk Docs
  6. Binance.US lists DUSK — Binance.US
  7. Regulation (EU) 2024/1624 (Anti-Money Laundering Regulation) — EUR-Lex, Official Journal of the EU
  8. Dusk price page — Coinbase

Last reviewed October 20, 2026. Written by . Utility Lens ratings are editorial judgments, not investment advice. Market data from CoinGecko. Spot an error? Request a correction.

About the author

Dave McNaught has worked in IT since 1999 and founded All Business Technologies (ABT) in 2003, a Boston-area firm providing Managed IT, Cybersecurity, Managed AI, Web Design and App Development. He publishes The Crypto Guide.

Full bio