Transparent: Canton Network data without running a node
Hi everyone,
At DTEAM, we have been working on Transparent [X], an API layer designed to make Canton Network data easier to access for developers, applications, and automated agents.
Today, interacting with Canton data often means deploying a participant node, keeping it synchronized, managing infrastructure, and maintaining the integration around it. That makes sense for many production use cases, but it can also create unnecessary overhead for teams that primarily need reliable read access to network data.
Transparent provides access to the Canton JSON Ledger API through a standard HTTPS endpoint, without requiring the user to operate their own node.
The basic idea is simple:
- Create an API key.
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Point JSON Ledger API v2 requests to the provided endpoint.
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Pay only for the requests you make using prepaid credits or x402 payments settled in Canton Coin.
There are no separate SDKs or custom data formats to integrate. The goal is to keep the interface close to the existing Canton Ledger API while abstracting the infrastructure required to serve the requests.
Transparent [X] uses a shared pool of Canton participant nodes to route API traffic. Node operators can also connect their own participant node to the pool and receive a share of the credits spent on requests served by their infrastructure.
We believe this model could be useful for teams building:
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analytics and monitoring tools;
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explorers and dashboards;
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AI agents that interact with Canton data;
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prototypes and early-stage applications;
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backend services that need ledger data but do not yet require a dedicated participant node.
Transparent is already live and available to use today. Teams can create an account, purchase credits, and start making API requests immediately. Current plans and pricing are available on the website: https://transparentscan.xyz/
We are sharing it with the community to collect feedback and better understand which endpoints, data access patterns, and operational requirements are most important to Canton builders.
Separately, DTEAM is also assessing demand for a potential Canton Node-as-a-Service offering. This would be intended for organizations that need their own managed validator infrastructure but do not want to deploy, monitor, upgrade, and maintain it in-house.
At this stage, we are primarily trying to understand the level of interest and the requirements potential users would have around deployment architecture, key management, uptime, monitoring, and support.
For feedback or to discuss a potential NaaS use case, please contact us at contact@....
We would be glad to hear your feedback.
- It would be interesting to hear more how you are thinking about how this interacts with Canton Privacy, parties, party data, etc. Participant hosting is related data sovereignty and privacy.Edward
Transparent does not provide network-wide access to Canton data or expose private transactions belonging to unrelated parties. The service acts as a managed gateway to the JSON Ledger API through participant nodes connected to the Transparent pool.