Aleo, Toku, and Paxos Labs Launch First Private Stablecoin Payroll Solution, Removing the Final Barrier to Enterprise Stablecoin Adoption

San Francisco, CA & New York, NY / January 29, 2026 — Toku, the global compliance platform processing more than $1 billion in token payroll volume, today announced a strategic partnership with Aleo, the leader in zero-knowledge technology, and Paxos Labs, the enterprise infrastructure platform for embedded on-chain finance, to launch the first fully private stablecoin payroll solution - turning one of the world's most sensitive financial operations into a secure, blockchain-native use case.

Employers can now run stablecoin payroll with the same reliability and compliance as traditional systems, but with instant settlement, complete privacy, and transparent compliance across 100+ jurisdictions.

The integration marks a critical turning point for enterprise blockchain adoption by solving the privacy problem that has blocked mainstream stablecoin payroll. While stablecoins processed over $33 trillion in 2025, less than 1% of businesses use crypto for payroll because traditional blockchains expose individual salaries, bonus structures, and corporate treasury balances to public view.

Through this partnership, Toku's global payroll platform now runs on Aleo's privacy infrastructure, enabling enterprises to pay employees and contractors using stablecoins such as USAD (issued by Paxos Labs and backed 1:1 by Paxos Trust Company's regulated stablecoin, USDG). Crucially, all transactions remain confidential, shielded from public view, while Toku continues to manage employment contracts, tax obligations, benefits administration, and regulatory compliance across jurisdictions.

How It Works:

1. Seamless Integration with Existing Payroll – Companies continue using their existing HR and payroll systems, including ADP, Workday, UKG, and Gusto, while Aleo provides the private settlement layer behind the scenes via Toku's API.
2. Private, Compliant Stablecoin Payroll – Employees receive compliant stablecoin payments on Aleo with complete privacy and the same regulatory protection as traditional payroll. Zero-knowledge proofs ensure compensation data stays confidential while Toku handles automated tax withholding, country-specific reporting, and employment law requirements in each jurisdiction where workers reside.
3. Full EOR Capabilities – Toku can directly employ talent across jurisdictions and deliver compliant private stablecoin payroll without requiring companies to open local entities. Toku manages all employer responsibilities end-to-end, including contracts, onboarding, statutory benefits, tax withholding, and regulatory filings, ensuring that USAD paychecks on Aleo meet employment law requirements in the country where each worker resides.

Ken O'Friel, CEO of Toku:

"Every public company CFO we talk to gets excited about stablecoins until they realize their payroll would be public. That's where the conversation ends. This partnership with Aleo finally gives them what they've been asking for. With the GENIUS Act now providing regulatory clarity, the path is clear for private stablecoins to become the standard for the $55 trillion global payroll market."

Howard Wu, Co-founder of Aleo:

"People all over the world want access to dollar-backed stablecoins, but they shouldn't have to broadcast their salary to the public to get it. Payroll is the perfect real-world use case to demonstrate this. What we've built with Toku is the first solution to offer true privacy for stablecoins, and we expect this to become the standard for all on-chain finance. If your money isn't private, it isn't secure."

Bhau Kotecha, Co-founder of Paxos Labs:

"For stablecoins to move beyond experimentation, they need to fit into real business workflows. Privacy is becoming table stakes for enterprise adoption - whether it's payroll, treasury management, or consumer financial services. USAD was designed to support exactly these kinds of integrations, and it's exciting to see the Aleo and Toku teams demonstrate what's possible when privacy and infrastructure work together."

Why This Matters

• Complete privacy: Zero-knowledge technology shields salary data, bonus structures, and corporate treasury from public view. Competitors and the public see nothing.
• Instant settlement: Real-time payroll processing 24/7/365, eliminating banking cut-off times and multi-day delays.
• Employee protection: High-profile employees in sensitive regions aren't targeted due to visible wallet balances.
• Global reach with local compliance: Aleo's private infrastructure combined with Toku's 100+ country coverage ensures automated tax withholding, employment contracts, and regulatory reporting in each jurisdiction.
• No system disruption: Native integrations with ADP, Workday, UKG, Gusto, and any payroll platform mean finance teams keep using familiar tools.
• Proven at scale: Stablecoins now dominate digital asset compensation, accounting for more than 90% of reported payouts according to a recent compensation survey from Pantera Capital.

The Business Case

Traditional cross-border payroll involves multiple intermediaries, multi-day settlement times, high fees, and complex compliance requirements. But the bigger blocker for enterprise stablecoin adoption has been privacy: on traditional blockchains, every salary, every bonus, and every treasury movement is visible to the world.

Toku's Aleo-powered solution solves both problems. Employees receive payments instantly and privately, while Toku handles tax reporting, employment law, and regulatory requirements in each jurisdiction. This privacy protection opens the door for the $55 trillion global payroll market to adopt stablecoin infrastructure.

The integration requires no migration from existing platforms, meaning there's no disruption to current HR systems or processes. Companies simply enable private stablecoin payroll through Toku's API while maintaining their existing workflows.

Before launching publicly, Aleo and Toku integrated the system to pay their own globally distributed teams across North America, Europe, and Asia, demonstrating the real-world viability of private crypto payroll. Team members can now opt-in to receive their salaries in stablecoins, giving them instant access to dollar-denominated currency without sacrificing personal financial privacy.

Beyond immediate benefits, this partnership marks a critical turning point for enterprise blockchain adoption. While other payroll platforms offer stablecoin payouts, they do so on transparent blockchains that expose sensitive data. And while some blockchains promise privacy, none have been integrated into a compliant, global payroll system ready for business use. This is the first and only solution that delivers on both fronts, setting a new market standard.

The partnership positions Aleo as the blockchain of choice for private financial infrastructure, with Toku joining a growing ecosystem of privacy-focused applications building on the network.

Availability

Private stablecoin payroll will roll out to select Toku enterprise clients in Q1 2026, with full availability expected by mid-2026. Companies interested in early access can join the waitlist at toku.com.

About Aleo

Aleo is the leading blockchain for private stablecoin payments and confidential applications. By providing a secure foundation for digital assets, Aleo enables businesses to leverage the speed and scale of blockchain technology without sacrificing the privacy and security of their financial data. For more information, visit aleo.org.

About Paxos Labs

Paxos Labs is the enterprise-grade infrastructure platform for branded stablecoins and embedded on-chain financial products. Built on Paxos' $180B+ track record in tokenization and over a decade of regulatory expertise, Paxos Labs enables fintechs, banks, and marketplaces to issue white-label stablecoins, integrate compliant yield, and embed lending directly within their platforms. For more information, visit paxoslabs.com.

About Toku

Toku connects the world's largest payroll companies, including ADP, UKG, and Workday, to stablecoin rails with their API. Any customers of any payroll company can use Toku to turn on compliant stablecoin payroll with just two clicks. Toku processes more than $1 billion in annual token payroll volume across 100+ countries, providing enterprise-grade compliance infrastructure and EOR capabilities for global workforce management.

Learn more at www.toku.com.

Press contact:

press@toku.com