In today’s edition, we take you behind the scenes of:

Shared ledger: On Tuesday, the Cari Network disclosed that ZKsync’s Prividium, a permissioned Ethereum Layer-2, will serve as the blockchain infrastructure for its tokenized deposit platform. The announcement also brings into public view a consortium of regional banks that has been forming since September 2025, including Huntington Bancshares, First Horizon, M&T Bank, KeyCorp, and Old National Bancorp. Together, these banks hold more than $600 billion in deposits.

Why it matters: The Cari Network is the latest example of banks turning to tokenized deposits to modernize payment infrastructure. So far, development has largely been driven by large institutions such as JPMorgan, Citi, and HSBC, each building proprietary systems. More recently, a second wave is emerging: multi-bank networks designed to operate across institutions. In the U.S., Cari is the second such initiative, following the announcement by Vantage Bank and Custodia in October 2025.

Filling the gap: Both efforts target mid-sized and regional banks that lack the resources to build their own infrastructure and are reluctant to rely on networks controlled by larger competitors. At the same time, they address a more structural limitation: tokenized deposits do not naturally interoperate across banks. Consortium-based models aim to create shared rails where deposits can move between institutions.

Regulatory tailwind: Coming back to the U.S., the timing of the Cari Network announcement is notable. Just last week, FDIC Chairman Travis Hill stated that any financial product meeting the statutory definition of a deposit remains a deposit, regardless of the technology used to record it. This distinction matters. Unlike stablecoins, which regulators are moving to exclude from pass-through deposit insurance, tokenized deposits can qualify for both yield and FDIC coverage.

Behind the scenes: To understand how the Cari Network is structured and how it operates in practice, we reviewed the network’s whitepaper and spoke with the Cari Network and Matter Labs. Our condensed findings are presented below.

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The Cari Network is built as a single shared ledger that all participating banks connect to, rather than separate infrastructures per institution. On this common system, each bank issues tokenized representations of its own deposits, while the underlying deposits remain on its balance sheet.

For users, this results in a dual structure: a traditional bank account paired with an onchain balance that mirrors it 1:1. In practice, this allows deposits to move across the network as tokens, without ever leaving the regulated banking system.

Technically, the network runs on ZKsync’s Prividium, a permissioned Ethereum Layer-2. Transaction data and state remain offchain, while cryptographic proofs are posted to Ethereum to ensure finality. Access is restricted to approved participants, with visibility scoped by role so that each bank sees only its own customer activity.

This infrastructure choice is also driven by the fact that ZkSync is technically “maintaining interoperability with broader blockchain ecosystems”, according to Ludwig, with Ethereum remaining the most widely used network today.

At a high level, the system combines instant token transfers with delayed interbank settlement.

When a user converts funds, their bank issues tokens that mirror the deposit. These tokens can then be transferred in real time to another user, even if they are at a different bank, with balances updating instantly on the shared ledger.

Behind the scenes, however, the underlying funds do not move at the same speed. Instead, obligations between banks are accumulated and settled later through netting cycles using existing payment rails. To bridge this gap, a middleware layer translates onchain transactions into formats that banks’ core systems can process.

The result is a split model: payments appear immediate to users, while settlement between banks continues to follow a more traditional, deferred process.

The network is operated by Cari LLC as a central coordinating entity, which is responsible for running the infrastructure, onboarding participants, and maintaining the rulebook that defines how tokens are issued and transferred.

At the same time, participating banks retain full ownership of their customer relationships and remain responsible for core compliance functions such as KYC, sanctions screening, and transaction monitoring.

Within that setup, access to the network is tightly controlled. Tokens can only move between verified participants, and transactions must satisfy predefined rules before they are executed. This creates a shared system across banks, but one that operates within a centrally governed and permissioned framework.

The initial rollout is focused on domestic USD transfers between participating banks, in a closed network.

From there, the key question is scale, as the model depends on bringing more institutions onto the same infrastructure and increasing the number of counterparties each participant can reach.

As with any closed-loop system, the key constraint is network effects. The value of the network increases with each additional participant, but reaching critical mass is not guaranteed.

The architecture, however, does not limit the model to a single network. Prividium instances can interconnect with each other and with public Ethereum via zero-knowledge bridges, creating a potential path toward interoperability. According to our information, Matter Labs is already in discussions with banks in both the United States and Europe, suggesting that these networks could link over time rather than remain isolated.

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KEY TAKEAWAYS

Disclaimer: The information provided in the Institutional Briefing by Blockstories does not constitute investment advice. Accordingly, we assume no liability for any investment decisions made based on the content presented herein.