Casper 2.0 introduces the Zug protocol—an entirely new consensus model engineered for the practical demands of real world applications. Zug provides for instant finality, ensuring asset transfers are atomic and irrevocable. In the real economy, when an asset changes hands, the transaction cannot linger in limbo “for 64 confirmations.” Ownership must be clear: either the seller holds the asset, or the buyer does.

Zug’s deterministic consensus—in contrast to the probabilistic methods used by many blockchains—provides absolute clarity. Participants, observers, and regulators, Casper enables real-time transparency and auditability for all parties involved, both at the moment of transaction and indefinitely thereafter.

Zug also supports a larger validator set, opening doors to broader participation and decentralization while reducing the impact of underperforming peers on the network operation

In decentralized environments, it is essential to clearly define who can do what right from the start. In the real world, not every employee of a business holds the same permissions, and smart contracts should mirror this fundamental truth. Loopholes in access rights enforced solely by the smart contract logic may be more easily exploited by malicious actors. Due to the immutable nature of blockchain, the result of such unwanted access may be catastrophic and irreversible.

Casper 2.0 addresses this with native access control for smart contracts. Every party in a real-world asset transaction — the buyer, seller, broker, escrow agent, or auditor — can only access the specific functionality they are authorized to use. The explicit nature of the built-in access control provides greater transparency for users and auditors.

Moreover, real-world assets are often co-owned or governed by groups (e.g., employees, shareholders, partners), not individuals. Changing the state of such assets requires collective or layered approval. Casper solves this through native multi-signature support. Accounts on Casper can delegate their execution powers to a group of accounts, with each being assigned a corresponding weight. A transaction only proceeds once the combined weight of the collected transaction signatures meets a predefined threshold. Native multi-signature support on Casper makes collective governance secure and transparent.

Smart Contracts are the backbone of on-chain applications. In order to model real-world scenarios, they must be capable of evolving alongside the use cases they represent, especially those involving high-value or regulated assets.

In traditional software, developers have tremendous flexibility in making fast adjustments to real-world needs. Version 1.0 is rarely the last version released – yet Web3 environments have often ignored these realities, relying on insecure alternatives and work-around patterns, leaving systems vulnerable and fragile.

On Casper, smart contracts are natively upgradable. When a policy shift or regulatory update demands a change in logic, Casper allows you to update your contracts seamlessly and securely. These upgrades are fully transparent to users and auditors, enforcing the trust blockchain was meant to bring.

Bringing the real-world economy into Web3 has been constrained by unfamiliar programming environments and immature tooling. Most blockchain platforms rely on obscure programming languages and development patterns, making it difficult for traditional developers to contribute. End-to-end testing is often an afterthought, and scalable, high-performance, indexed data sources remain limited or non-existent.

This is why only a narrow slice of developers have the specialized knowledge needed to build on Web3 today. Most companies are forced to either retrain their teams or outsource development to those with niche experience.

Casper 2.0 meets developers where they are. Instead of forcing teams to learn new paradigms, Casper 2.0 enables them to extend existing Web2 skill sets into the blockchain space, without compromising on performance, security, or maintainability.

Casper 2.0 makes real-world application development accessible in several ways:

1. WASM-Based Execution for Mainstream Languages

Casper’s WebAssembly-based execution engine allows developers to build smart contracts using Rust or any language that compiles to WASM—unlocking access for tens of millions of developers worldwide, rather than the small niche familiar with blockchain-specific languages.

2. Test-Driven Development Built In

Casper’s execution environment includes a full testing harness, enabling developers to apply familiar test-driven development (TDD) practices and achieve high test coverage—just like they would in any modern software stack.

3. Factory Contract Support

Casper 2.0 introduces native support for CEP-86 factory contracts, empowering developers to more optimally configure the installation and invocation of their smart contracts.

4. Real-Time Event Emissions

Applications can subscribe to CEP-88 on-chain event emissions, allowing traditional systems to react to blockchain events in real-time—unlocking new automation and integration capabilities.

5. Cross-Platform SDKs

Casper offers robust Software Development Kits (SDKs) for all major platforms, simplifying integration into both greenfield and legacy applications.

6. High-Performance Indexed Data Access

Developers gain access to a highly available, scalable data service through REST APIs, WebSockets, and RPC—making it easy to build data-rich, responsive applications.

7. Smart Contract Frameworks like Odra

Higher-level frameworks such as Odra provide abstractions, modularity, and testability, allowing developers to rapidly build, extend, and maintain powerful on-chain experiences.

Web3 development doesn’t have to be unfamiliar, nor incompatible with traditional software practices. With Casper 2.0, it isn’t.

Casper 2.0 represents the culmination of many years of deep engineering effort—the product of many man-decades of development and hundreds of thousands of lines of new code. It’s not only an upgrade; it’s a reinvention.

Beyond enabling the seamless integration of the real-world economy with Web3, Casper 2.0 delivers major improvements to core infrastructure, along with brand-new features and capabilities that elevate performance, security, and usability across the board.

Casper 2.0 is one of the first Layer1 blockchain architected to support multiple virtual machines/execution environments at once. Developers are able to target different execution environments, while user transactions can indicate which virtual machine to target. When supported by the respective VMs, the protocol can mediate calls between smart contracts running in different virtual machines.

Casper 2.0’s innovative multi-virtual machine architecture is a perfect embodiment of the project’s modular approach to software development, and in addition to the two virtual machines currently envisioned, the new architecture provides developers opportunities to introduce new virtual machines within the Casper ecosystem, whether general or narrow purpose in nature.

Proof-of-stake blockchain networks are powered by decentralized node operators. These operators may run nodes to support their own applications, for data indexing or analysis, or to offer validation services on behalf of CSPR holders who delegate to them in exchange for a share of the protocol’s rewards.

Casper 2.0 delivers a wind range of upgrades that make operating and maintaining nodes easier, more flexible and more rewarding:

Dedicated Sidecar for JSON-RPC
Casper 2.0 introduces a new, dedicated sidecar process that assumes all responsibility for running the JSON-RPC server and exposing the JSON-RPC endpoints to the internet. The node binary no longer handles RPC directly, which brings several key advantages:

- JSON-RPC can evolve independently from the core node.

- The sidecar can be run on a separate machine, offering greater flexibility in infrastructure setups.

- Offloading RPC logic reduces the workload on the node, enabling easier deployment of alternative node implementations.

Delegation Controls
Validators can now [optionally] set a minimum and/or maximum delegation amount (CEP-90), allowing them to target specific user segments and better manage stake distribution.

Custom Delegation AgreementsValidators can reserve dedicated slots for specific delegators and assign a per-delegator fee percentage [delegation rate], making it possible to form bespoke agreements with clients—an essential feature for institutional partnerships or private delegation arrangements.

Casper 2.0 unlocks a range of new on-chain capabilities that expand what smart contract developers can build, and how users can benefit. These new features lay the groundwork for more sophisticated, secure, and value-rich applications on Casper Network.

Liquid Staking
Smart contracts can now interact directly with Casper’s auction system, enabling on-chain applications to stake CSPR, earn rewards, and integrate staking yields into their native economic models. This paves the way for innovations like natively secured liquid staking and yield-enhancing mechanisms for tokenized real-world assets.

‍Zero-Knowledge Hashing Algorithms
Casper 2.0 expands its cryptographic toolkit with support for Blake3b and SHA-256, in addition to Blake2b. These hashing algorithms make it easier and more cost-efficient to implement new functionalities such as zero-knowledge (ZK) proofs, with a generic hashing interface to support future expansion.

Token Burning (CEP-92)
The introduction of CEP-92 allows smart contracts and user accounts to natively burn CSPR (CEP-92 burn mechanism), reducing total token supply. The Casper gas cost model can direct gas fees to a burn address, supporting deflationary or supply-management strategies.

‍Improved Pseudo-Random Hash Generator

‍Casper 2.0 adds more entropy to its pseudo-random hash generator, improving the security and unpredictability of random outputs—essential for gaming, lotteries, or randomized staking mechanisms.

Casper 2.0 marks the beginning of a new era for both Casper and the broader blockchain industry, but the roadmap doesn’t end here. Work on what comes next has already begun.

Building on Casper 2.0’s new multi-virtual machine architecture, Casper 2.1 will introduce a brand-new virtual machine that is designed to  simplify smart contract development and unlock powerful new capabilities. The new VM introduces streamlined context and a range of developer-centric features including:

- contract schemas and reflection for dynamic behavior and metadata access,

- payables to support more flexible transaction flows,

- high level interfaces and traits for modular, reusable design,

- gas cost optimizations and lowered resource consumption, resulting in improved throughput and efficiency.

Traditionally, blockchain users are required to pay “gas” for transaction execution. These fees are designed to reflect the computational and storage resources consumed, and to provide economic security against spam and denial of service attacks.

Casper 2.0 will be configured to use traditional, execution-cost-based fees. However, the protocol has been architected to support a variety of alternative models that provide flexibility for developers and dramatically improve the user experience, including:

‍Fixed Costs

Each transaction type incurs predefined, fixed cost based on a configurable price table, enabling predictable and user-friendly fee structures.

‍Fee Elimination

Transactions become essentially free to the end user. Rather than paying fixed fees to the block proposer, a temporary hold on the transaction cost is placed within the user’s account, which is later released. This protects the network from spam/denial-of-service attacks while making transactions essentially free-to-use for users

‍Dynamic Gas Pricing

The protocol can dynamically adjust fees based on network congestion. Users specify the maximum cost multiplier they’re willing to pay, and transactions execute only when the dynamic pricing is within this threshold

Using on-chain governance, the Casper community will be asked to decide on the roll-out, activation and configuration of these new gas fee paradigms in Casper releases beyond the initial activation of Casper 2.0 on mainnet.

Casper 2.0 is more than an upgrade. It is a defining step toward bringing the real-world economy on-chain. And it starts with accessibility: opening the door to real creators, innovators, and builders who can push blockchain forward and create lasting value on it. Casper has always welcomed those outside the crypto space, but with the capabilities introduced in 2.0, it’s now one of the most approachable and purpose-built networks for real-world use cases. With Casper 2.0, the network becomes a serious contender for real adoption, ready to support an ecosystem shaped by the people, economic systems, and rules that define the world beyond Web3.

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The future begins now.