Canton Network Overview
An overview of the Canton Network’s architecture, its native token Canton Coin, and how it aligns participant incentives
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Canton Network Overview
By: Tanay Ved
Key Takeaways:
Canton is structured as a “network of networks” that enables independent, permissioned subnets to interoperate securely while maintaining data privacy and control.
The Global Synchronizer and Canton Coin form the coordination and incentive layer, aligning validators, infrastructure providers, and applications.
The network is secured by 295 validators and 26 super validators, supporting transaction validation and powering applications like stablecoin issuance and asset tokenization.
As new participants join the ecosystem, application rewards are becoming more evenly distributed, placing greater emphasis on sustained app usage.
Introduction
In a vast sea of blockchains, networks often differentiate themselves by optimizing for scalability, interoperability, or application specific features. Approaches range from those like Solana, maximizing single chain throughput, to modular networks like Ethereum, which rely on Layer-2s to scale capacity. The Canton network occupies a unique position, adopting a "network-of-networks" approach where each application independently adds capacity, enabling the network to scale horizontally. In an ecosystem dominated by general-purpose public blockchains, Canton prioritizes privacy, control and interoperability, distinctly positioning itself for the demands of institutional finance.
In this issue of Coin Metrics’ State of the Network, we provide an overview of Canton’s architecture, examine the role of its native utility token Canton Coin, and explore how the protocol aligns incentives for key participants such as validators and application developers.
As a designated Super Validator in the Canton Network, Coin Metrics is deepening its role in the ecosystem. We are excited to launch the Coin Metrics Canton Intelligence App, bringing participants visibility into network activity, while preserving the confidentiality that Canton is uniquely built to protect.
A “Network of Networks” & The Global Synchronizer
Developed by Digital Asset, Canton is a public-permissioned network designed specifically for institutional finance. Canton was launched in May 2023 by a consortium of over 30 institutions, and takes a fundamentally different approach to blockchain architecture. Rather than operating as a single, global ledger, Canton is structured as a “network of networks”, inspired by the independent yet interconnected cantons of Switzerland. Each application runs in its own sovereign, permissioned environment, and these environments can interoperate securely without losing control over sensitive data or business logic.
Source: Canton Coin, A Responsible Approach to Digital Tokens
Underpinning this architecture is the Global Synchronizer, a publicly accessible, permissioned subnet operated by super validators and governed by the Global Synchronizer Foundation (GSF). It acts as a coordination layer, enabling atomic transactions and consistent state synchronization across the network's subnets. Importantly, it does so without revealing sensitive information beyond the parties involved.
This selective visibility is made possible by Canton’s variation of the UTXO (Unspent Transaction Output) model, where only participants to a transaction can view it. Applications are built using Daml, a smart contract language developed by Digital Asset, which embeds fine-grained privacy controls directly into contract logic, allowing applications to specify exactly which parties can access what data. While transaction-level privacy is enforced at the contract level, movements of Canton Coin itself remain publicly visible for transparency and auditability.
Canton Coin: The Native Utility Token
Canton Coin (CC) is the native utility token of the Canton Network. It underpins transaction fees for the Global Synchronizer and aligns incentives among core stakeholders in the network, creating a balanced economic system.
Token Supply & Issuance Model
New Canton Coins are minted every 10 minutes, with rewards distributed to three key participants:
Super Validators: Institutions and infrastructure providers that help secure the network by participating in shared consensus (miners).
Validators: Entities responsible for operating “sync domains”, validating transactions within their permissioned environments.
Application Developers: Builders and operators of applications that generate on-chain activity and drive demand for block space.
Canton Coin has a current supply of 28.48B tokens and is expected to stabilize near a maximum supply of 100B over the next 10 years. The issuance model starts with a higher rate of inflation, and gradually declines over time. As seen in the chart below, a large drop in daily issuance occurred in January 2025, reflecting a programmed reduction in new token issuance. The network is currently issuing ~51.5M native units of Canton Coin per day, with a daily inflation rate of ~0.16%. This is supported by 295 validators, of which 26 are super validators.
Source: Coin Metrics Network Data Pro
As the network matures, the share of rewards will shift to align long-term incentives with sustainable usage of the network. Rewards for infrastructure providers are set to gradually decrease, shifting the focus to application developers.
Source: Canton Coin Whitepaper
Fee Burn
To offset inflation and align token value with network activity, all fees paid in Canton Coin are permanently removed out of circulation through a burn mechanism. These fees are calculated based on the size and value of the transaction. This burn mechanism can introduce deflationary pressure when on-chain activity increases. To date, 517M Canton Coins have been burned, reflecting the growing utility and economic activity on the network.
Source: Coin Metrics Network Data Pro
Application Activity & Rewards
Through application rewards, Canton incentivizes institutions and developers to launch applications by providing a continuous stream of rewards. This has helped early adopters gain a larger share of rewards, while the widening split of app rewards is helping grow participation. The ecosystem now spans a range of applications, from tokenized money market instruments like Hashnote’s USYC to stablecoin issuers like Brale.
Coin Metrics’ ATLASTM provides visibility into the Canton Coin rewards tied to validators, applications and other sub-accounts. Below, we see the total monthly rewards earned by featured applications from new Canton Coin issuance. While rewards from issuance are set to decrease, rewards can scale as apps facilitate more transactions.
Application providers like Brale benefitted from an early mover advantage, initially capturing the majority of featured app rewards. Over time, applications like Digital Asset’s billing app and Gas Station have gained meaningful share. As more participants join the network, rewards are becoming more evenly distributed, shifting the focus toward sustained app usage.
Conclusion
Canton offers a unique approach to blockchain infrastructure, tailored for the needs of regulated financial markets. Its “network of networks” design allows independent subnets to interoperate securely while maintaining privacy and control. Coordination is handled through the Global Synchronizer, while Canton Coin sustains the network’s incentive structure by aligning rewards across validators, infrastructure providers, and application developers.
With the pool of application rewards set to grow, the ecosystem is steadily expanding, supporting use-cases like asset tokenization to stablecoin issuance and payments. Coin Metrics is excited to contribute as a Super Validator helping secure the network and as an application provider delivering visibility into its evolving activity.
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