ADI is an Ethereum-linked cryptocurrency and the native gas and utility token of ADI Chain, a zero-knowledge Layer 2 designed for regulated finance, stablecoins, tokenized real-world assets, and institutional applications.
ADI Chain uses a three-layer architecture. Ethereum acts as the settlement and security layer, while the ADI Chain Layer 2 handles execution, smart contracts, payments, and applications. Institutions and governments can also deploy specialized Layer 3 networks with configurable compliance rules, governance models, and fee policies.
The network is built with the ZKsync Stack, zkSync OS, and the Airbender proving system. Transactions are executed off-chain, grouped into batches, and represented by zero-knowledge validity proofs that are submitted to Ethereum for verification. The project publishes target performance of more than 8,000 transactions per second, soft confirmations of approximately 0.2 seconds, and finality in approximately 2 seconds.
Who is behind ADI and where is it based?
ADI Chain was founded by Sirius International Holding, which project materials describe as the digital arm of International Holding Company, or IHC. The project is based in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. ADI Foundation’s legal terms identify it as a non-profit foundation registered under Abu Dhabi Global Market’s Distributed Ledger Technology Foundations Regulation of 2023.
The sources reviewed do not confirm a separate individual founder or a founding year for ADI Foundation or Sirius International Holding. Publicly documented milestones begin with the ADI Chain testnet announcement on 21 August 2025, followed by the ADI token announcement on 8 December 2025 and the mainnet and token launch on 9 December 2025.
The official team page lists Andrey Lazorenko as chief executive officer. Other publicly listed executives include Ramana Kumar, president of the stablecoin ecosystem, Herman Stohniiev, chief technology officer, David Smith, chief financial officer, and Ann Datsenko, chief operating officer. The listed technical leadership includes Ilia Shirobokov, head of blockchain, and Dennis Oliver Huisman, blockchain developer relations lead.
What is ADI used for?
ADI pays transaction fees on ADI Chain and its associated Layer 3 networks. It is also designed for smart-contract execution, ecosystem incentives, settlement between network participants, and staking through a treasury-backed reward model.
The principal applications include regulated stablecoins, institutional payments, treasury management, cross-border settlement, digital identity, government registries, healthcare verification, logistics, and tokenized real-world assets. DDSC, a UAE dirham-backed stablecoin associated with First Abu Dhabi Bank, IHC, and Sirius International Holding, received approval from the Central Bank of the UAE on 11 February 2026. ADI Foundation states that an institutional transaction worth AED 110 million was completed using DDSC in May 2026.
Other announced applications include regulated tokenized maritime assets through Shipfinex, digital trade infrastructure with the AfCFTA Secretariat, and tokenized deposits through a September 2026 partnership with DCM.
Tokenomics and supply
The stated total supply is 999,999,999 ADI, while the circulating supply is 9,434,511 ADI. The published allocation assigns 35% to the community fund, 25% to treasury reserves, 12% to private investors, 10% to partnerships, 10% to the team, 4% to a token incentivization pool, and 4% to liquidity.
Community funds vest over 72 months and treasury reserves over 108 months. Private investors, partnerships, and the team have a 12-month cliff followed by 72 months of vesting. The incentivization and liquidity allocations are immediately available.
The reviewed documentation does not establish a fixed inflation rate or a universal burn mechanism. It describes staking rewards as treasury-backed rather than created through additional minting. The Ethereum ERC-20 contract is 0x8b1484d57abbe239bb280661377363b03c89caea.
At the market snapshot captured on 6 October 2026, ADI was priced at $8.05, with a 24-hour change of -0.25%. Its market cap was $75.98M (rank #497), 24-hour volume was $3.01M, and its all-time high was $8.89, the current price is 9.41% below it.
Consensus and security
ADI Chain is an Ethereum-settled zero-knowledge rollup rather than an independent Layer 1 with its own proof-of-work or conventional proof-of-stake security model. A sequencer orders transactions, GPU provers generate validity proofs, and Ethereum smart contracts verify those proofs before state changes are finalized.
This model means the sequencer can order transactions but cannot finalize an invalid state transition without an accepted proof. The canonical bridge connects Ethereum and ADI Chain through the rollup’s proof system. ADI Chain also completed a devp2p mainnet protocol upgrade on 20 August 2026.
Partnerships, advantages, and development
Key relationships include ZKsync and Ethereum for the technology and settlement layers, Chainlink for oracle and cross-chain infrastructure, Crypto.com for planned ADI Chain integration, Securitize for institutional tokenization, Zoniqx and ZIGChain for real-world asset infrastructure, and Tangem for hardware wallets. The ecosystem also includes partnerships involving Shipfinex, DCM, AfCFTA, and First Abu Dhabi Bank.
ADI Chain’s main differentiator is the combination of Ethereum-linked security, EVM compatibility, a native gas token, and compliance-configurable Layer 3 networks. This design targets institutions that need jurisdiction-specific controls while retaining access to shared blockchain infrastructure and liquidity.
Development activity has progressed from the August 2025 testnet to the December 2025 mainnet, the DDSC institutional transaction in May 2026, the August 2026 mainnet networking upgrade, and partnerships announced through September 2026. The project’s stated long-term objective is to bring 1 billion people on-chain by 2030, with future development focused on stablecoins, tokenized assets, institutional settlement, identity, payments, and sovereign digital infrastructure.