ZOLANEAR

ZOLANEAR is a cross-chain privacy automation platform built at the intersection of Zcash shielded transactions, NEAR Protocol chain abstraction infrastructure, and Solana high-speed DeFi. Its core product, ShadeLink, lets users define conditional workflows that execute automatically without custodial exposure of private keys.

Core Mechanism

ShadeLink operates through three integrated layers.

Trusted Execution Environment (TEE): Automation logic runs inside a Phala Network TEE powered by Intel SGX, meaning the code executing user-defined conditions is cryptographically verified and tamper-proof.

Multi-Party Computation (MPC): Transaction signatures are generated through MPC rather than a centralized key server. Users retain their own private keys while automation agents control derived addresses. ShadeLink never holds or accesses user funds directly.

NEAR Intents and Chain Abstraction: ZOLANEAR uses NEAR Intents as its cross-chain authorization and bridging layer. NEAR Intents OmniBridge handles moving assets between chains, while ShadeLink chain abstraction normalizes different address formats across Solana (Ed25519), NEAR (NEP-413), and Ethereum. Any of these addresses can own assets inside ShadeLink and trigger automated actions.

Together these three layers allow ShadeLink to detect when intent-bridged funds arrive on a destination chain and automatically execute follow-up actions including swaps on Jupiter DEX, deposits into lending protocols, and yield optimization without requiring manual user intervention.

Key Features

Triggered Execution: Users define conditions that fire when specific events occur, such as the arrival of bridged funds on Solana. This eliminates the multi-step manual workflow of bridging assets and then separately executing DeFi actions, consolidating both into a single atomic instruction.

Atomic Bridge-and-Action: ShadeLink detects the arrival of NEAR-intent-bridged funds on the destination chain and immediately chains the follow-up transaction. A user can instruct ShadeLink to bridge ZEC from Zcash to Solana via NEAR Intents and simultaneously execute a Jupiter DEX swap into a target Solana token, with the entire sequence running without the user remaining online or manually approving each step.

Cross-Chain Privacy: By routing shielded ZEC assets through NEAR Intents and into Solana DeFi, ShadeLink allows Zcash holders to participate in DeFi without exposing their originating wallet identity. Zcash shielded transactions protect the source; NEAR Intents handles the cross-chain mechanics; ShadeLink orchestrates DeFi actions on the destination chain.

Non-Custodial Architecture: The TEE and MPC design means at no point does ZOLANEAR control user private keys. Users authorize automation workflows upfront, and the system executes within cryptographic constraints set by the TEE, verifiable by any party inspecting the enclave code.

Supported Assets and Use Cases

The primary supported asset is Zcash (ZEC), which ZOLANEAR treats as the privacy input layer. From ZEC, users can reach Solana-native tokens via Jupiter DEX, including stablecoins, yield-bearing assets, and speculative tokens. The hackathon demonstration used Zcash Cat (ZCAT) on Solana as an example destination asset.

Stablecoin yield routes represent another intended use case: optimizing yield by routing stablecoin liquidity from NEAR or Ethereum to Solana lending protocols through a single automated instruction. Because ShadeLink is built atop NEAR Intents infrastructure, it can in principle extend to any asset pair that NEAR Intents supports for cross-chain transfer.

The bridging flow connects a Zcash-compatible wallet to the Zolana Bridge platform, selects ZEC as the source and Solana as the destination, authorizes via NEAR Intents, and delivers wrapped ZEC (wZEC) to a Solana wallet such as Phantom or Solflare. SOL is required in the destination wallet to cover transaction fees.

Team and Origin

ZOLANEAR was built by Jakub Pawlak (GitHub: @dawg). The project originated from a privacy-focused hackathon track and was submitted to Devfolio as Zolanear ShadeLink, where it was eligible for a NEAR Protocol bounty. The technology stack is JavaScript and TypeScript, with Solana, NEAR Protocol, chain abstraction, and verifiable computation as the primary technical components.

Audit Status

No third-party security audit has been publicly disclosed for ZOLANEAR or ShadeLink. The project relies on Phala Network Intel SGX TEE infrastructure for tamper-proof execution guarantees and on MPC for key management security. Independent smart contract or protocol audits have not been announced.

Ecosystem Fit

ZOLANEAR occupies a specific niche at the convergence of Solana DeFi speed and Zcash privacy, mediated by NEAR Protocol chain abstraction. NEAR Intents has become a live cross-chain routing layer connecting native ZEC to Solana DeFi markets, with Raydium serving as a primary liquidity venue for Solana-based ZEC. ZOLANEAR ShadeLink extends this foundation by adding programmable automation on top, transforming a simple asset bridge into a conditional execution layer.

For Solana users, ZOLANEAR provides a path to privacy-preserving DeFi participation using ZEC as a shielded entry point. For Zcash holders, it offers access to Solana deeper DeFi liquidity without sacrificing the privacy guarantees that Zcash shielded transactions provide. The non-custodial, TEE-secured architecture addresses a genuine concern in cross-chain automation: the risk that bridging and automation platforms become custodial intermediaries that can be compromised.

The project launched through hackathon competition and maintains a live deployment. No token has been issued.