Status is an open-source, decentralized communication platform that bundles a secure peer-to-peer messenger, a multi-chain non-custodial crypto wallet, and a Web3 browser into a single integrated application. It is designed to act as a private and censorship-resistant gateway to the decentralized web, allowing users to interact with decentralized applications (dApps) and the Ethereum ecosystem directly from a mobile or desktop device. Governed by its community of token holders, the project prioritizes user sovereignty, privacy, and free speech, with its ecosystem powered by the native utility token, SNT (Status Network Token). ^{[1] [2]}​

Overview

Status was conceived as a mobile operating system for the Ethereum network, with the goal of driving the mass adoption of dApps by targeting smartphone users. The platform is built around the concept of user empowerment, ensuring individuals retain full control over their personal data, digital assets, and private communications without relying on centralized servers or intermediaries. Its core product is an application available for desktop (macOS, Windows, Linux) and mobile (Android, iOS) that consolidates the three pillars of its functionality: private messaging, a crypto wallet, and a Web3 browser. ^{[1] [3]}​

The project's philosophy is rooted in a set of core principles, including being open-source, decentralized, and community-driven. All of its code is publicly available, and the network's direction is influenced by SNT holders through a formal governance process. This commitment extends to its technological infrastructure, as the Status team also develops and maintains key components for the wider Ethereum ecosystem, such as the Waku messaging protocol and the Nimbus consensus client. ^{[1] [2]}​

The ecosystem is underpinned by SNT, an ERC-20 token used for governance, accessing application features, and incentivizing network participation. In late 2025, the project began preparations for the launch of its own Layer 2 solution, the Status Network, which is designed to be a fast and low-cost execution layer for communities built on the platform. ^[1]​

History

The idea for Status was first introduced by co-founders Carl Bennetts and Jarrad Hope in September 2016 during a presentation at DevCon2, an annual Ethereum developer conference. ^[2] The original whitepaper, titled "A Mobile Ethereum OS," was published on November 4, 2016, outlining their vision for a light client that could bring Ethereum to mobile devices. ^[4]​

On June 20, 2017, Status conducted a high-profile Initial Coin Offering (ICO) for its SNT token, raising the equivalent of approximately $100 million in ETH within hours. ^{[4] [3]} The ICO price was set at 1 ETH for 10,000 SNT. The immense demand for the token sale led to severe network congestion on the Ethereum blockchain, an event that highlighted the network's scalability challenges at the time. ^{[2] [4]} The first version of the Status application was released that same month. ^[3]​

Over the following years, the project continued its development and expansion. In June 2018, Status acquired the team behind the mobile dApp browser discover.im to improve its browser capabilities. The "Status Keycard," a contactless hardware wallet, was introduced in April 2019 to provide enhanced security for users. ^[4] The platform officially launched its V1 on the Ethereum mainnet in February 2020, moving the application out of its long beta phase. ^[4]​

In December 2020, the Status team announced a reduction of its core contributors by 25% to ensure a more sustainable financial runway, reflecting the pressures of the bear market at the time. ^[4] A major architectural overhaul and redesign, referred to as Status V2, was rolled out in July 2023, introducing new features like "Communities" and improved performance. ^[4] More recently, Status introduced a "unified Status mobile app" built from a single codebase to create a more consistent user experience across desktop and mobile platforms. ^[1]​

In late 2025, the project took significant steps toward launching its own Layer 2 solution, the Status Network. On December 15, 2025, "Pre-Deposit Vaults" for ETH and SNT were opened, allowing users to become early participants. On December 23, 2025, the Status community approved a governance proposal to activate the "Status Community Fund" to provide resources for the Status Network's mainnet readiness. ^[1]​

Core Principles

Status operates based on six foundational principles that guide its development and mission. ^[1]​

• Open Source: The project's source code is publicly available, permitting anyone to contribute, build upon, or fork the project.
• Decentralized: The network is powered by its members who run the Status desktop application, eliminating the need for central servers.
• Secure: The platform uses self-custodial keys and elliptic curve cryptography to secure user funds and employs end-to-end encryption for private messages.
• Community-Driven: Holders of the SNT token can participate in governance to influence the project's development and future direction.
• Permissionless: The peer-to-peer network is designed to be censorship-resistant, allowing users to communicate freely without interference.
• Free and Ad-Free: The application is free to use, does not contain advertisements, and has no paid tiers or usage limits.

The project is listed as "Messari Transparency Verified" and is legally organized under Status Research & Development GmbH. ^{[1] [5]}​

Technology and Architecture

Status is built on a stack of decentralized technologies, functioning as a light client on the Ethereum network. This allows it to interact with the blockchain without requiring users to download the entire chain history. ^[3]​

Core Components

The Status application is built on three pillars of functionality: ^[4]​

1. Secure Private Messenger: A messaging tool that uses the Waku protocol for peer-to-peer communication. Account creation is pseudonymous, requiring no phone number or email address. All private and group chats are end-to-end encrypted, and the protocol is designed to obscure metadata, protecting who is communicating with whom. ^{[1] [3]}
2. Multi-chain Crypto Wallet: A non-custodial wallet that gives users full control over their private keys and funds. It supports sending, swapping, and bridging assets across multiple blockchain networks and allows users to manage cryptocurrencies and NFTs. A key security feature is a "signing phrase" to help users identify and avoid phishing attacks. ^{[1] [3]}
3. Web3 Browser: An integrated browser that enables users to securely discover and interact with over 2,000 dApps on Ethereum and its Layer 2 networks. The browser is designed to prevent third parties from accessing user browsing data. ^{[1] [3]}

Underlying Protocols

• Waku Protocol: Waku is a decentralized, censorship-resistant communication protocol that serves as the messaging layer for Status. It is an evolution of the Ethereum Whisper (shh) protocol, optimized for scalability, privacy, and use on resource-restricted devices. It is developed and maintained by the Status team but is designed for use by any decentralized application. ^{[4] [2]}
• Encryption Standards: For messaging security, Status implements the X3DH (Extended Triple Diffie-Hellman) key agreement protocol and the Double Ratchet Algorithm. These specifications were pioneered by Open Whisper Systems (the creators of Signal) and provide robust end-to-end encryption with Perfect Forward Secrecy. ^[3]
• Identity System: A user's identity on Status is derived from a locally generated cryptographic keypair, secured by a password. This approach dissociates the user's on-platform identity from any real-world identifiers like phone numbers or email addresses. ^[3]

Status Ecosystem

Beyond the main application, the Status project includes several other key products and infrastructure contributions.

Status Network (Layer 2)

Status is developing its own Layer 2 scaling solution, the Status Network, described as a "thin, fast and secure execution layer for communities" and a "gasless L2." The network is intended to provide a low-cost environment for the social features and communities within the Status app. In late 2025, pre-deposit vaults for ETH and SNT were opened in preparation for the mainnet launch, which was upcoming at that time. ^[1]​

Keycard

Status Keycard is a hardware wallet in the form factor of a credit card. It integrates with the Status mobile app via NFC to provide cold storage-level security for private keys. It is used for transaction signing and authentication, requiring physical confirmation from the user. It also supports FIDO U2F and GPG functionalities. ^{[5] [4]}​

Nimbus

​Nimbus is a high-performance Ethereum client developed by the Status team. It is designed to be lightweight and efficient, making it suitable for resource-constrained devices. Nimbus serves as both a consensus client and an execution client, playing a crucial role in maintaining the health and decentralization of the Ethereum Proof-of-Stake network. ^[2]​

Status Portfolio Wallet (Beta)

This is a browser extension for Google Chrome that combines the functionality of a crypto wallet with a real-time portfolio tracker. ^[1]​

Status Network Token (SNT)

The Status Network Token (SNT) is an ERC-20 utility and governance token that is integral to the Status ecosystem. ^[5]​

Tokenomics

• Ticker: SNT
• Blockchain: Ethereum
• Token Standard: ERC-20
• Ethereum Contract: 0x744d70fdbe2ba4cf95131626614a1763df805b9e ^{[3] [2]}
• Total Supply: 6,804,870,174 SNT ^{[5] [3]}
• Circulating Supply: Approximately 4.79 billion SNT as of January 2026. ^[3]
• All-Time High: $0.6849 (January 3, 2018) ^[2]
• All-Time Low: $0.005929 (March 13, 2020) ^[2]
• Exchanges: SNT is available for trading on major centralized and decentralized exchanges, including OKX, Upbit, HTX, Bithumb, and Uniswap. ^{[3] [2]}

Utility and Use Cases

SNT has several functions within the Status network designed to facilitate governance, incentivize participation, and unlock features:

• Governance: SNT holders can propose and vote on initiatives that guide the development and policies of the Status Network. ^[5]
• ENS Username Registration: Users can lock up SNT to register a human-readable ENS subdomain, such as yourname.stateofus.eth, which serves as a portable username and wallet address. ^[5]
• Community Creation and Curation: Staking SNT is required to create "Communities," which are persistent, token-gated group chats. Other users can also stake SNT to curate the Community Directory, influencing which communities are promoted. ^{[5] [3]}
• Network Incentives: SNT is used to incentivize node operators and service providers within the network. An example is the Push Notification Market, where users can stake SNT to run a node. ^[3]
• DApp Curation: DApp developers can stake SNT in a mechanism called "Tribute to Stake" to have their applications featured in the Status DApp Directory, increasing their visibility. ^[3]
• Sticker Market: A decentralized marketplace allows artists to create and sell sticker packs for use in the messenger, with SNT as the medium of exchange. ^[4]
• Spam Prevention: A feature known as "Tribute to Talk" was proposed, where users would need to stake a small amount of SNT to initiate contact with others, acting as a deterrent to spam. ^[2]

Founders

Status was co-founded by Jarrad Hope and Carl Bennetts. Prior to Status, they worked together for over six years, co-founding a software distribution business that achieved over 20 million installations. This experience provided them with direct insight into how centralized platforms collect and monetize personal user data, which motivated them to build a decentralized, privacy-preserving alternative. ^[3]​

Controversies and Challenges

ICO Network Congestion

The Status ICO in June 2017 attracted massive demand, resulting in what was described as "participation chaos." The event caused unprecedented congestion on the Ethereum network, leading to thousands of failed transactions and a dramatic increase in gas prices. The incident became a prominent case study for Ethereum's early scalability limitations. ^[4]​

Competition and Adoption

Status operates in highly competitive markets. In private messaging, it competes with both large centralized incumbents like Telegram, Signal, and WhatsApp, as well as other decentralized communication projects. Achieving mainstream user adoption has remained a significant and persistent challenge for the project. ^[4]​

Funding and Development

The project has undergone long development cycles. In December 2020, the team announced a 25% reduction in staff to ensure long-term financial sustainability. This move highlighted the financial pressures faced by many crypto projects during extended bear markets and the challenges of funding long-term open-source infrastructure development. ^[4]​