The Midnight Foundation has expanded its alliance of founding federated node operators to seven, adding global payments giant MoneyGram, Vodafone's digital asset venture Pairpoint, and publicly-listed investment platform eToro. This move comes ahead of the privacy-focused blockchain's planned mainnet launch in March 2026.
The three new operators join previously announced members Google Cloud, Blockdaemon, Shielded Technologies, and AlphaTON Capital (acting on behalf of Telegram), forming a group that will operate ten initial nodes. This federated structure is designed to provide operational stability and security during Midnight's early phase before transitioning to broader community-driven block production.
Midnight Network is built around zero-knowledge (ZK) architecture, aiming to deliver privacy-preserving smart contracts while maintaining regulatory compatibility. "Working with Midnight and running blockchain nodes fits naturally into this strategy, allowing us to help ensure that privacy, compliance and reliability are built in from day one," commented Luke Tuttle, MoneyGram's Chief Technology Officer.
MoneyGram, the world's second-largest money transfer service operating in over 200 countries with nearly 400,000 agents, will bring its real-world payments expertise to the network. The company will collaborate with the Midnight Foundation to explore how regulated payment services can integrate blockchain while aligning with compliance requirements.
eToro's participation follows recent support for Midnight's native token, NIGHT. "We were excited to learn about Midnight's novel approach to programmable data protection and selective disclosure, designed to balance user confidentiality with regulatory compliance," said Omri Ross, Chief Blockchain Officer at eToro.
Pairpoint, a joint venture between Vodafone and Japan's Sumitomo Corporation, is assessing integration of Midnight's ZK framework into its Economy of Things platform. "Midnight's zero-knowledge architecture is key to providing the trusted IoT device digital identity and authentication required to scale across global networks as we move towards the IoT AI economy," stated David Palmer, Chief Innovation Officer at Vodafone.
The convergence of payments, telecommunications, and digital trading platforms around Midnight's privacy architecture signals a broader institutional focus on privacy-enhancing technologies that balance confidentiality with compliance obligations. This enterprise participation in node operations demonstrates rising institutional confidence in privacy-focused blockchain infrastructure.
