What is Oasis (ROSE)?
- Author
- CRYPTO PORT Editorial
- Published
- Updated
- Reading time
- 6 min
In short
Oasis is a blockchain built around running smart contracts whose inputs and state stay confidential. It separates the consensus layer from the execution layer and uses hardware-isolated execution environments in the latter to keep data private. ROSE pays fees and is used for staking.
Key points
- Separates the consensus layer from execution layers called ParaTimes
- The Sapphire execution layer keeps inputs and state confidential while staying EVM-compatible
- Confidentiality relies on TEEs — hardware-isolated execution environments
- A conventional public execution layer is also available for workloads that do not need privacy
Definition
A layer 1 blockchain that uses isolated execution environments so smart contract inputs and state can remain confidential.
On a typical blockchain, transaction contents and contract state are entirely public. Transparency has its uses, but it rules out cases — sealed bids, credit information, medical data — where the computation is wanted but the contents are not to be shown. That constraint is what Oasis addresses.
The architecture has two layers. The consensus layer handles only ordering and finality, while computation happens in execution layers called ParaTimes. Several exist for different purposes, so a workload can choose a confidential or a public one. The split also keeps heavy computation from slowing consensus directly.
Sapphire, the confidential layer, runs EVM-compatible contracts while keeping input data and contract state encrypted. Decryption and execution occur inside a TEE — an isolated region within the processor — so only results are visible outside. Developers write Solidity and specify which values stay confidential.
This model assumes the hardware providing the TEE can be trusted. Attacks against TEE implementations have been reported in academic work, so confidentiality depends on trust in the hardware vendor as well as the software. That is a structural property worth understanding.
Watch out for
- · Confidentiality depends on TEE hardware, and attacks on TEE implementations have been documented in research
- · Public and confidential execution layers behave differently, so porting a contract between them needs checking
- · Confidential transactions cannot be inspected externally, making auditing and incident tracing harder than on a transparent chain
Frequently asked questions
Are transactions completely secret?
What is hidden is the execution layer's inputs and contract state; the fact that a transaction occurred and the fee paid are still recorded. The strength of that privacy also depends on the hardware being trustworthy.