NEAR exec says privacy is the key to moving business treasuries onchain

Why NEAR says privacy comes first

Tiwari's pitch is blunt. Businesses won't move their finances onchain while every salary, supplier payment and reserve balance stays visible to competitors, he told Crypto Briefing in a written interview. He argued that public blockchains expose financial activity to competitors and potential attackers.

“Confidentiality should be the default,” Tiwari said

That doesn't mean hiding the books from regulators. Tiwari said businesses need selective disclosure mechanisms so they can share records with auditors and regulators without making transactions publicly accessible.

In NEAR Business, transaction amounts, assets and recipients remain private, while membership, roles and approval decisions are publicly verifiable onchain. The platform uses a self-custodial multisignature Treasury Contract (transactions are authorized through NEAR's multiparty computation network once the required approvals are met). Crypto Briefing noted that Tiwari didn't clarify whether operators of the confidential shard can access the underlying transaction data.

Assets, fees and a security scare

Tiwari said interest in the platform ranges from layer 1 foundations to startups. Existing NEAR Intents partners are also opening treasuries to collect and store fees. There's no subscription fee; NEAR Business collects fees on swaps executed through NEAR Intents, and Tiwari said the protocol is exploring optional enterprise tiers while it develops custom spending policies for broader commercial use.

The launch followed a security scare.

On October 1, an attacker drained approximately $3.8 million from NEAR Intents, the crosschain trading infrastructure that supports NEAR Business, through a vulnerability in its Omni deposit and withdrawal system, Crypto Briefing reported. The funds were returned after NEAR Intents issued a 48-hour ultimatum. Tiwari said the protocol has since strengthened its deposit infrastructure and expanded SHIELD, its AI-powered threat detection system, adding real-time anomaly monitoring and security feeds from partners including ZeroShadow and Seal911.

Multichain pitch and AI agents

Tiwari set the product apart from privacy platforms Zama and Aztec, saying NEAR Business is built to operate across multiple blockchains rather than inside a single ecosystem. He also expects AI agents to execute a growing share of financial transactions. In his view, supporting automated treasury operations will require more safeguards, including formal code verification, confidential computing and transaction monitoring.