dusd

A large-scale incident has been recorded in the DeFi sector. The Makina Finance protocol, which manages assets worth over $100 million, has fallen victim to a complex attack using flash loans.

Analytical companies CertiK, PeckShield, and GoPlus Security report the following:
The hacker borrowed $280 million in USDC through a flash loan to manipulate the MachineShareOracle. The attack targeted the DUSD/USDC pool on the Curve platform.

Dusk Network is a Layer-1 blockchain that was built with a very clear goal: to bring privacy, compliance, and real world regulation together on a public blockchain without compromising performance or transparency. While many blockchains focus on open, permissionless finance or experimental DeFi, Dusk has taken a different and more difficult path. It is designed for regulated markets, institutional players, and real-world assets that must follow legal rules while still benefiting from blockchain efficiency. This positioning is what makes Dusk important and increasingly relevant as governments, banks, and enterprises move closer to on-chain settlement.

The project was founded in 2018 and has spent several years in research, cryptography development, and testnet iterations before reaching production readiness. This long build phase is not a weakness but a sign of intent. Regulated finance does not move fast, and systems meant to support it must be carefully designed, audited, and stable. On January 7, 2025, Dusk reached a major turning point when it produced its first immutable block on mainnet. This marked the transition from experimentation to a live settlement layer capable of supporting real financial activity. From that moment, Dusk stopped being just a concept and became working infrastructure.

What truly defines Dusk is its approach to privacy with accountability. Traditional public blockchains expose transaction details to everyone, which is unsuitable for institutions handling sensitive financial data. At the same time, fully private systems can conflict with regulatory requirements. Dusk addresses this by using zero-knowledge cryptography and selective disclosure. Transactions can remain confidential by default, while authorized parties such as regulators or auditors can verify compliance when required. This balance between privacy and auditability is essential for tokenized securities, compliant DeFi, and institutional settlement, and it is one of the strongest reasons why Dusk matters.

Throughout 2025, the team focused heavily on strengthening the Layer-1 itself. A key milestone was the Dusk Data Availability upgrade, known as DuskDS, which was activated in December 2025. This upgrade improved how transaction data is stored and verified across the network, preparing the chain for higher throughput and future execution environments such as DuskEVM. For node operators, this upgrade was a coordinated step that demonstrated the network’s ability to evolve without disruption. From an institutional perspective, this kind of orderly upgrade process builds confidence that the protocol can be maintained long term.

Dusk’s technical stack is largely written in Rust, reflecting a shift away from older Golang components. The current node software, known as Rusk, along with supporting cryptography libraries and identity modules like Citadel, shows an emphasis on performance, security, and maintainability. This migration also signals maturity, as Rust is widely trusted for safety-critical systems. The continued development activity through 2025 indicates that Dusk is not stagnant but actively refining its core infrastructure.

Partnerships have also played an important role in Dusk’s strategy. In November 2025, Dusk announced collaboration involving Chainlink and NPEX to support interoperability and high-integrity market data for regulated assets. This matters because tokenized real-world assets rely on accurate off-chain information such as pricing, corporate actions, and settlement events. By aligning with established data and interoperability standards, Dusk positions itself as a serious platform for institutions rather than an isolated blockchain ecosystem.

From a market and use-case perspective, Dusk is focused on financial market infrastructure. This includes tokenized bonds and equities, compliant issuance platforms, settlement systems, and custody workflows that can operate on-chain. These are not speculative ideas; they are areas where traditional finance is actively experimenting with blockchain. Dusk’s design choices make it suitable for these use cases in a way that many general-purpose blockchains are not.

The DUSK token plays a central role in the network. It is used for transaction fees, staking, and network security. Validators stake DUSK to participate in block production and consensus, aligning economic incentives with honest behavior. Tokenomics information, including supply distribution and historical issuance, is publicly documented to maintain transparency. While market prices fluctuate and should always be checked through live data sources, the underlying purpose of the token is clear: it secures the network and enables its operation rather than serving as a purely speculative asset.

Like any project targeting regulated finance, Dusk faces real challenges. Regulatory frameworks continue to evolve, and compliance requirements can differ by jurisdiction. Adoption will depend on whether institutions choose to build and settle on-chain at scale, which requires trust, liquidity, and legal clarity. Technical transitions, such as client upgrades and new execution layers, also require careful coordination. However, these risks are closely tied to Dusk’s ambition, and they are not signs of weakness but realities of operating at the intersection of blockchain and regulation.

In conclusion, Dusk Network represents a thoughtful and long-term approach to blockchain infrastructure. It is not designed for quick hype cycles but for durable integration with real financial systems. Its focus on privacy with accountability, its successful mainnet launch, its ongoing protocol upgrades, and its alignment with data and interoperability standards all point toward a network built for trust. As tokenized real-world assets and compliant on-chain finance continue to grow, Dusk stands out as a platform that was designed for this future from the beginning, not adapted to it later.

@Dusk $DUSK #dusd