Zilliqa (ZIL)

Overview

Zilliqa is a public, layer-1 blockchain for moving digital assets and running applications. Its native token, ZIL, pays for transactions and smart contracts. People can also stake ZIL to help secure the network. The project became known for sharding, a way to divide blockchain work among groups of computers so they can process transactions in parallel. (docs.zilliqa.com)

Zilliqa has changed since its early years. A major upgrade called Zilliqa 2.0 moved the network to proof-of-stake and expanded its support for Ethereum-style applications. In 2026, the project also began focusing on infrastructure for financial institutions that need to check whether a transaction meets their rules before it settles. These stages help explain both Zilliqa’s original design and its current direction. (blog.zilliqa.com)

History & Team

From research to a public network

Zilliqa grew out of blockchain research in Singapore. Its whitepaper appeared in 2017, followed by a public testnet in 2018 and a mainnet launch in 2019. The early goal was to make a public blockchain handle more activity by splitting transaction processing into smaller groups, or shards. Its first smart contracts used Scilla, a language created with an emphasis on clear contract behavior. (zilliqa.com)

Zilliqa’s early team brought together researchers, engineers, and entrepreneurs. Project materials identify Xinshu Dong as an early leader, Prateek Saxena as chief scientific advisor, and Amrit Kumar and Yaoqi Jia in senior technical roles. Max Kantelia and Juzar Motiwalla were also part of the founding effort. The original token plan assigned a share of ZIL to Anquan Capital, the company that incubated the underlying technology. Zilliqa later added Ethereum Virtual Machine, or EVM, compatibility in 2023 and launched its proof-of-stake upgrade in 2025. (docs.zilliqa.com)

Technology & How It Works

Sharding, then proof-of-stake

The first Zilliqa design divided participating computers into shards. Each shard could process transactions alongside the others rather than waiting for one group to do all the work. The original system used proof-of-work to help establish node identities and a voting process to agree on transaction results. That architecture made sharding central to Zilliqa’s approach to scaling. (docs.zilliqa.com)

Zilliqa 2.0 changed the way the main network reaches agreement. Under proof-of-stake, validators commit ZIL and take part in proposing and approving blocks. The upgraded protocol uses a consensus method called Pipelined Fast-HotStuff. In everyday terms, validators exchange votes so the network can agree on the order of transactions. Token holders can delegate ZIL to a validator instead of operating one themselves. (dev.zilliqa.com)

Smart contracts and application tools

Zilliqa has supported two ways to build smart contracts: its own Scilla language and the EVM environment used by many Ethereum applications. EVM support lets developers use familiar tools such as Solidity and lets users connect compatible wallets such as MetaMask. Scilla remains an important part of the network’s technical history and its earlier applications. (blog.zilliqa.com)

Zilliqa 2.0’s design also describes x-shards: customizable chains intended for particular applications. A project could choose settings suited to its users while connecting with the wider Zilliqa network. That design extends the original idea of sharding, but the proposed features are best understood alongside the project’s rollout plans rather than as one completed package. (blog.zilliqa.com)

Tokenomics & Utility

ZIL has several direct jobs on the network. It pays the fees required to send tokens and run smart contracts. Validators stake it to participate in consensus, while other holders can delegate their tokens and receive a share of staking rewards. These roles connect demand for ZIL to network activity and to participation in securing the chain. (zilliqa.com)

The original token generation plan set a limit of 21 billion ZIL. It allocated 40% for network rewards, up to 30% for early and community contributors, and the remaining 30% among Anquan Capital, Zilliqa Research, the team, agencies, and advisers. Those figures describe the initial allocation plan; rewards now operate within the upgraded proof-of-stake system. Zilliqa has also discussed balancing new rewards against tokens removed through transaction-fee burning. (blog.zilliqa.com)

Governance has a separate token, gZIL, which was introduced alongside Zilliqa’s earlier staking program. ZIL’s main network roles remain paying fees and supporting staking. Keeping the two tokens distinct makes it easier to understand why a ZIL balance alone does not describe every form of participation in the ecosystem. (blog.zilliqa.com)

Ecosystem & Use Cases

Zilliqa provides a base for applications that need shared records, digital tokens, and rules carried out by smart contracts. A payment application can use ZIL to move value. A game can record ownership of digital items. A financial application can use contracts to manage exchanges or other token-based services. Each application sets its own rules, while Zilliqa supplies the network on which those rules run. (zilliqa.com)

The project’s ecosystem directory includes ZilSwap, a token-exchange application; Avely Finance, which offers staking-related services; and tools for wallets, developers, and block explorers. EVM support has also made it possible to build using software familiar to developers from other EVM networks. These examples show the range of activity the chain supports without treating every listed project as part of Zilliqa’s core protocol. (zilliqa.com)

A newer use case is pre-settlement compliance. Zilliqa describes a proposed Mediation Layer that checks identity-based permissions before an institutional transaction proceeds. The idea is to put a credential check into the transaction workflow, rather than leave every check until afterward. The project’s roadmap links this work to planned stablecoin flows, partner deployments, and cross-chain settlement. (zilliqa.com)

Advantages & Challenges

Zilliqa’s long-running work on sharding gives it a distinct history among application blockchains. Its proof-of-stake upgrade gives staked ZIL a direct role in network consensus, while EVM support opens the door to widely used development tools. The combination offers builders a choice between Zilliqa’s earlier contract approach and an environment familiar across much of the crypto ecosystem. (docs.zilliqa.com)

The same evolution creates work for developers and users. Applications built for older Zilliqa tools and addresses have had to adapt as the network has moved toward EVM accounts. In 2026, Zilliqa disabled legacy transactions after a signing flaw and began moving legacy balances to EVM addresses. Building customizable shards and an institutional Mediation Layer adds another challenge: turning published designs and roadmap goals into working services used by outside organizations. (blog.zilliqa.com)

Where to Buy & Wallets

ZIL is available on Binance in supported regions and through Crypto.com’s U.S. offering. Exchange access depends on location. Binance has announced a move from legacy Zilliqa-network deposits and withdrawals to the Zilliqa EVM network; its ZIL trading services continue during that migration. (binance.com)

MetaMask can hold and use ZIL through Zilliqa’s EVM network and connect to its staking portal. ZilPay has served users of older Zilliqa accounts. A legacy address begins with zil1, while an EVM address begins with 0x. Zilliqa published a migration tool in September 2026 for holders moving balances from legacy accounts to EVM accounts. This address difference matters when choosing a wallet or an exchange withdrawal network. (blog.zilliqa.com)

Regulatory & Compliance

Zilliqa’s Singapore roots place part of its history in a jurisdiction where the Monetary Authority of Singapore supervises digital-payment-token service providers. In the European Union, the Markets in Crypto-Assets framework sets rules for many crypto-asset issuers and service providers. In the United States, FinCEN applies money-transmission rules to businesses engaged in certain virtual-currency exchange or transfer activities. These frameworks chiefly shape how services involving ZIL operate in each jurisdiction. (zilliqa.com)

Islamic-finance assessments examine the activity as well as the token. A Shariah screening document hosted by Bybit classifies the Zilliqa project as permissible, or halal, while separately judging the staking service described in that document as impermissible. Zilliqa’s later move to proof-of-stake changed what staking does on the network: delegated ZIL now helps validators secure it. The published assessment describes an earlier arrangement, so the project-level judgment and the treatment of its current staking system are separate questions. (bybit.com)

Zilliqa’s proposed Mediation Layer addresses a different kind of compliance. It is designed to check whether participants meet an institution’s transaction rules before settlement. The roadmap presents broader regulated flows as development goals, not as a blanket legal status for ZIL. (zilliqa.com)

Future Outlook

Zilliqa’s next stage centers on whether its upgraded chain can support useful applications while serving institutions with more specific transaction requirements. Its 2026–2027 roadmap describes credential checks, regulated settlement flows, and later cross-chain connections. These are milestones the project intends to build and demonstrate over time. (zilliqa.com)

For ZIL, the link is straightforward: more activity on the network means more occasions to pay fees, while proof-of-stake continues to give the token a role in validation. The broader question is how well Zilliqa can connect its research-driven origins, its EVM migration, and its institutional plans into one usable ecosystem. (zilliqa.com)

Summary

Zilliqa began with a plan to scale blockchain transactions through sharding. It has since become a proof-of-stake, EVM-compatible network whose ZIL token pays fees and helps secure the chain. Its applications span token services and developer tools, while its newer roadmap focuses on checking institutional transactions before settlement. Zilliqa’s place in crypto now rests on both that early technical work and the practical uses built on its upgraded network. (docs.zilliqa.com)