IOTA Challenges the TPS Race
IOTA brought a different argument to the institutional blockchain discussion at ETHTaipei 2026. During a panel focused on private and public chains, IOTA representative Ko-Wei discussed the factors institutions need to consider before putting financial and business activity onchain.
The discussion comes as ETHTaipei dedicates its second day specifically to institutions, with sessions covering custody, real-world assets and institutional-grade applications. Ko-Wei is listed among the speakers representing IOTA, alongside Teagan from Canton Network.
IOTA’s position is that transaction speed alone does not determine whether a blockchain is suitable for institutional adoption. Financial institutions have to consider who operates the infrastructure, how sensitive information is protected and whether counterparties can be exposed through public transaction data.
That creates a different set of priorities from the usual blockchain performance debate. TPS can matter when a network is processing large volumes, but institutions also need predictable governance, privacy controls and confidence that sensitive commercial relationships will not become visible to competitors.
Privacy is particularly important for financial markets. A public ledger can provide transparency and verifiability, but complete visibility into transactions may reveal trading relationships, counterparties and commercial strategies that institutions would normally keep confidential.
IOTA’s argument also focuses on governance. The network describes itself as public-goods infrastructure and says its goal is to provide a trusted and verifiable environment for enterprises and governments. That positioning gives institutional adoption a governance dimension beyond technical performance.
Privacy Becomes an Institutional Requirement
The private-versus-public blockchain debate is becoming more complicated as financial institutions move further into tokenization and real-world assets. Institutions want the benefits of shared ledgers without necessarily making every transaction or relationship visible to the entire market.
IOTA has been building around this broader requirement. Its stated focus areas include digital identity, verifiable credentials and privacy-preserving verification, allowing participants to prove information without requiring all underlying personal data to be exposed.
The approach also reflects a wider industry shift toward selective privacy rather than choosing between completely public transactions and completely closed systems. Recent research on institutional blockchain privacy has highlighted the trade-offs between confidentiality, auditability and regulatory requirements.
Related: IOTA Turns Blockchain Into Invisible Infrastructure for Global Supply Chains
For IOTA, this could become an important differentiator as institutions evaluate blockchain infrastructure. Banks, asset managers and corporations may not necessarily choose the chain with the highest theoretical throughput if using that network creates unacceptable privacy or governance risks.
The argument does not mean TPS is irrelevant. High throughput, low costs and reliable execution remain important for any blockchain expected to handle institutional activity. IOTA’s point is that these characteristics are only part of the decision.
The same question applies to tokenized assets and financial infrastructure. As more real-world assets move onchain, institutions will need systems that can coordinate multiple parties while controlling what information is publicly visible and what remains confidential.
That makes privacy and trust increasingly important areas of competition between blockchain networks. IOTA is positioning itself around those requirements, particularly as it targets enterprises, governments and real-world applications rather than focusing exclusively on crypto-native users.
The institutional blockchain race may therefore be decided by more than who can process the most transactions per second. For IOTA, the bigger question is whether institutions can trust the infrastructure with sensitive business relationships while retaining enough transparency to satisfy regulators and counterparties. ETHTaipei’s institution-focused programme shows that this debate is moving from technical theory toward the practical decisions financial firms will have to make as blockchain adoption expands.
About The Author
