Opened 24-02-2026 by vadasnorbert, last activity 1mo ago
Proposal file:
/proposals/SVM-compatibility-for-Canton.md
Zenith proposes to build SolanaVM (SVM) compatibility for Canton, enabling SVM-based applications to run with atomic composability across Zenith SVM and Canton subnets and settle on Canton MainNet.
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Is this meant in the sense of developer ecosystem or will the SVM execution engine actually connect and communicate with Solana network?
Where can one find documentation on external_call, particularly
Is there more detail on what "state roots" really mean in this context?
Hi @nycnewman , Thank you for your questions. This means that SVM applications can be migrated over to Zenith SVM as is, similar to how Zenith EVM allows EVM applications to be lifted and shifted with no (or very minimal) modification to Zenith, and become atomically composable with any Canton application or other Zenith applications deployed on any other Zenith Stack instances.
Zenith EVM/SVM will have external interoperability with Ethereum, Base, Solana etc though, through cross chain protocols, like CCIP or LayerZero.
Our PRs for external_call can be found in the below repos, some have been merged already. We are working closely with the engineering team from DA to have all of them reviewed and merged.
Similar to how it works with Zenith EVM, it is the Canton participants hosting the Daml state contract of Zenith SVM that will run the SVM node, a relayer and the external call server (ECS). They will be involved as parties in any Canton transaction that triggers an SVM event. They will perform native SVM execution triggered through external call.
When a Canton participant that does not run the SVM node etc., receives a user transaction that has an SVM event, it can call /prepare on one of the SVM-capable participant nodes that will generate the payload (without submitting it), and will send the wrapped payload back to the requesting participant that will submit it on Canton.
The current plan is to use post SIMD-215 bank hash as the "state root", but we will revisit this once more at the implementation phase.
This one is an pause for now. Please bring up again later.
@vadasnorbert @tuommaki, following the external_call() questions on this file in May.
We are designing a compliance flow in which a Canton-side check gates a Solidity call on Zenith. We understand from the current Zenith documentation that a Gateway workflow can prepare an EVM transaction, include it in the Canton-routed batch, and inspect the resulting receipt before the Canton-side state transition commits.
What we cannot determine is whether that integration surface is available to third-party Daml workflows on Zenith EVM Testnet today. Is there a supported API, DAR, example workflow, or access to the containerized evaluator demo that an external team can build against? If not, is there an approximate availability window?
The Canton Foundation Dev Fund is moving to Dev Fund 2.0
Thanks for making and opening a PR for your proposal. The Developer Fund is transitioning, which shifts toward RFP-scoped proposal system and clearer problem & adoption requirement framing.
Full details on Dev Fund 2.0: https://github.com/canton-foundation/canton-dev-fund/blob/main/2026-2028-strategic-roadmap.md#requests-for-proposals
To keep your proposal PR active, please update it by within the next 10 days with:
Proposals not updated by then will get their PRs closed and will not be considered for the next Dev Fund cycle.
@vadasnorbert @tuommaki, following the
external_call()questions on this file in May.We are designing a compliance flow in which a Canton-side check gates a Solidity call on Zenith. We understand from the current Zenith documentation that a Gateway workflow can prepare an EVM transaction, include it in the Canton-routed batch, and inspect the resulting receipt before the Canton-side state transition commits.
What we cannot determine is whether that integration surface is available to third-party Daml workflows on Zenith EVM Testnet today. Is there a supported API, DAR, example workflow, or access to the containerized evaluator demo that an external team can build against? If not, is there an approximate availability window?
@Noosphere-314 Thank you for your question. Since it is not related to this file, I'd suggest we take it offline. I understand we've been introduced yesterday on another channel, and we can discuss it further there.
Authors: Norbert Vadas, Teemu Päivinen, Heslin Kim, Henri Kämäräinen
Status: Submitted
Created: 2026-02-24
Zenith proposes to build a SolanaVM (SVM)-based execution environment for Canton, enabling Canton participants to run SVM-based applications that are atomically composable across Canton subnets and settled on Canton MainNet.
This work extends Zenith's existing CIP-0091 engagement for EVM-compatibility by also delivering SVM-compatibility for Canton.
The SVM extension leverages the same core Daml primitive, external_call(), implemented by Zenith (PRs pending), while addressing the additional complexity of the SVM execution engine.
The end result connects the largest developer ecosystem in Web3 (Solana) with Canton, extending its global composability along the vision of the Polyglot Canton Whitepaper.
Within this grant, Zenith delivers a production-ready SVM execution environment for Canton that:
All SVM transactions are routed through Canton, with subsequent settlement and finality on Canton MainNet. This ensures that Zenith SVM is not value extractive to Canton.
Zenith SVM runs in a trusted execution model where the Canton participant serves dual roles:
The SVM extension uses the same primitive implemented by Zenith in Daml as the Zenith EVM solution described in CIP-0091:
external_call() function: Allows Canton contracts to invoke a deterministic, locally running SVM execution service and receive results. This is used to (1) confirm the result of native SVM execution back to Canton in an atomically, and (2) verify the state roots of Zenith SVM on Canton, to reach finality and settlement.This work directly advances Canton’s polyglot vision by delivering an SVM-compatible execution extension for Canton, strengthening global composability across different runtimes. It allows developers to write applications in Solidity (for EVM) or Rust (for SVM) that are atomically composable with Canton-native applications.
This aligns with ecosystem priorities to broaden developer participation, expand Canton’s addressable market, and attract new DeFi and Web3 builders, while ensuring all EVM- and SVM-related activity remains routed through and settled to Canton.
The external_call() primitive is fully backwards compatible:
external_call() is a new, opt-in primitive; only DARs that explicitly reference it depend on the feature.Focus: Core SVM execution engine integration, external_call() integration with Zenith SVM, deployment of Zenith SVM on a local multi-node Canton test network.
Deliverables:
external_call() function with the SVM execution service.Focus: MainNet-ready end-to-end implementation, ready for production launch.
Deliverables:
Once Milestone2 is accepted, Zenith commits to deploy Zenith SVM to Canton MainNet.
Focus: Developer experience, documentation, and ecosystem onboarding support.
Deliverables:
The completion of the grant will be evaluated based on the following:
Milestone 1:
external_call().
Milestone 2:
external_call() is not rolled out to Canton TestNet by the time Zenith is ready to demonstrate Milestone 2, until the primitive is available to allow end-to-end demonstration.Milestone 3:
Total funding request: 2,466,667 CC (370K USD at 0.15 CC/USD rate)
Payment breakdown by Milestone:
Milestone 1 — SVM integration and MVP: 1,066,667 CC (160K USD at 0.15 CC/USD rate) upon committee acceptance of the criteria.
Milestone 2 — End-to-end implementation: 1,066,667 CC (160K USD at 0.15 CC/USD rate) upon committee acceptance of the criteria.
Milestone 3 — Ecosystem enablement and developer tooling: 333,333 CC (50K USD at 0.15 CC/USD rate) upon final release and acceptance.
Volatility handling
The milestone amounts are denominated in Canton Coin (CC) using a baseline reference price of 0.15 USD per CC.
For each milestone period, the 30-day moving average (MA) of the CC/USD price will be evaluated.
Example:
For Milestone 1, which spans four months, the total milestone amount will be divided into four equal monthly tranches, each evaluated independently under the above mechanism for the respective month. The adjusted total funding for Milestone 1 will be the sum of the monthly tranches after rebase to the 30-day MA price.
Upon each milestone release, Zenith will collaborate with Canton Foundation on:
Canton's Polyglot vision aims for global composability, privacy, and regulatory compliance across execution environments. While Zenith EVM (built under CIP-0091) addresses EVM compatibility, Solana represents the largest active developer community in Web3 and a rapidly growing DeFi ecosystem.
In Q4 2025, Zenith observed rapid and consistent growth of interest from Solana ecosystem participants for composability with Canton. Zenith SVM would:
Zenith is uniquely well-positioned to deliver this extension:
external_call() primitive in Daml, and Zenith’s framework, are already built and currently being tested under CIP-0091 for EVM. Extending them to SVM is an incremental though technically complex addition rather than a ground-up rebuild.external_call() primitive, and is about to demonstrate its MVP for transaction processing between Canton and Zenith EVM in the coming days.Rebuilt from the recorded board moves (complete history). get_dev_fund_lifecycle(number) gives the same in the MCP.