Aztec Network: not contacted by the regulatory authority, closing Connect is a commercial consideration

On March 14, Aztec Network, a privacy and expansion solution based on ZK Rollup, said that it had not been contacted by the regulatory authority and that closing Connect was a commercial consideration; The maintenance cost of Aztec Connect is not low; The team is focusing on the next generation of default privacy programmable smart contract protocol Noir (using the bitcoin style UTXO model, which will abstract zero-knowledge proof and cryptography, and application developers can develop Noir smart contracts without understanding cryptography); Still focus on Layer2, not Layer1. （ ChainFeeds）

Interpretation of this information:

Aztec Network, a privacy and expansion solution based on ZK Rollup, recently made a statement regarding the closure of Aztec Connect. The company clarified that they have not been contacted by any regulatory authority and that the decision to close Connect was purely a commercial consideration. Maintaining Aztec Connect had become a costly affair and shutting it down was the more feasible option for the company.

The team at Aztec Network is now focusing on developing the next generation of default privacy programmable smart contract protocol Noir using the bitcoin style UTXO model. The key feature of Noir will be its ability to abstract zero-knowledge proof and cryptography making it easier for application developers to develop Noir smart contracts without needing to understand cryptography. The company is still focusing on Layer2 rather than Layer1, meaning that they aim to provide a scaling solution that works on top of existing blockchain networks rather than creating a new network from scratch.

The closure of Aztec Connect indicates that even companies working in the blockchain space face the same commercial pressures as other organizations. It also highlights the importance of preventing fraud and illegal activities on blockchain networks, which is why regulatory authorities are likely to maintain a close watch on companies operating in this space.

The focus of Aztec Network on the development of the Noir protocol indicates their commitment to solving privacy issues on blockchain networks. The abstraction of cryptography and zero-knowledge proof will make smart contract development much more accessible, which could lead to the creation of more privacy-preserving applications. The emphasis on Layer2 scaling solutions indicates that Aztec Network is more interested in creating sustainable solutions for current blockchain networks rather than disrupting the entire industry through the creation of a new network.