Former Symphony COO joins Cardano builder IOG as CEO of new Midnight blockchain project

Software research and development company Input Output Global, Inc (IOG) – one of the builders behind the blockchain platform Cardano – has appointed Eran Barak as CEO of Midnight, its new data protection-focused protocol.

Barak has previously held leading roles in the financial industry. Most recently, he co-founded and served as CEO of financial services compliance-enabling workflow company Symphony.

He also helped establish FINOS (Fintech Open Source Foundation) – an organization that runs open source solutions for financial services.

In his new role at IOG, Barak will lead and build out the business unit building Midnight – a new blockchain protocol announced at the end of last year.

Midnight is currently under development, a platform for global scale applications with principles and integrity. Targeted at developers, companies, governments and individuals, Midnight uses a new privacy-first programming model to allow users to operate more safely and securely.

The platform will use zero-knowledge encryption (ZK Proofs) and a combination of private and public computation to create a trustless ecosystem that safeguards sensitive personal and commercial data while meeting compliance needs. Use cases may include financial workflows, health records, supply chain activities, etc.

Midnight will act as a sidechain of the popular Cardano blockchain, inheriting its security and decentralized qualities, while significantly expanding Cardano’s utility, opening up valuable new use cases for individuals and organizations looking to trade, publish or share sensitive data.

“Since its founding, IOG has continued to push the boundaries of innovation in the blockchain space. Midnight looks to not only challenge assumptions about what digital identity and personal ownership of data entails, but to give users the tools they need to build confidential systems,” says Charles Hoskinson, CEO and co-founder of IOG.

“Midnight will give governments, companies and consumers alike the freedom to decide what data to make public, while operating in a secure and compliant manner.

“Bringing a product like Midnight to market requires someone who understands the heart of the product and the benefits it will bring to a global, digital ecosystem. Eran’s track record of building businesses and championing transformative technology in financial services makes him the perfect fit as we continue our journey to bring a truly revolutionary product to market.”

Eran Barak, Managing Director Midnight at IOG, added: “With its commitment to world-class rigor, research and engineering, IOG has rightfully built a reputation as a leader in the blockchain space.

“In Midnight, IOG has built a breakthrough technology that addresses market needs by delivering on the trifecta of risk and compliance, world-class performance and cost predictability. I am excited to join this amazing team and help bring Midnight’s vision to market.”