Aztec Network, an Ethereum Layer 2 for private smart contracts, said Tuesday that Alpha V5 is now live on mainnet, describing it as “the fastest private transactions we've ever shipped.”
The company said Alpha V5 can prove a fully private transaction in about 2.5 seconds on a laptop and reduce transaction fees to below $0.05. On the Alpha V5 page, Aztec presents those numbers as gains over the prior version, saying proving time is “~2.5 seconds on a consumer laptop, down 2x from V4,” while the sub-$0.05 fee is 50% cheaper for a fully private token transfer.
Those metrics are self-reported by Aztec and have not been independently benchmarked.
Local proving remains central to the design
Proof generation speed is a core part of Aztec’s approach because proofs are created on a user’s own device instead of being sent to a server that would be able to see the transaction. The Alpha V5 page says the release “resolves the critical V4 issues” and points to testing by “234+ researchers” in the Cantina bug bounty.
From alpha network and public testnet to mainnet
The launch follows Aztec’s earlier alpha network and public testnet, moving performance and cost claims that had been discussed in earlier stages onto mainnet.
First apps are scheduled to roll out this week
Aztec said usable applications will start going live this week, beginning with Nyx. The wallet connects an existing Ethereum wallet for private transfers on Ethereum and private yield on the lending protocol Aave.
Nyx is usually available by invitation only. For this launch window, Aztec said access is open to everyone for 24 hours.
Benchmarks and broader app count remain unclear
Aztec has not published a reproducible benchmark for the proving-time or fee figures. It also has not specified how many live applications beyond Nyx are already available on mainnet.
In a reply in the announcement thread, the account said “more apps are rolling out VERY soon.”