Decot: A Privacy-Preserving Web3 Platform for Contract Lifecycle Management

Contracts are the foundation of business transactions, defining the rights and obligations between parties. Effective Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) is crucial for maximizing value and ensuring compliance throughout a contract’s life. However, many organizations struggle with CLM, leading to lost opportunities and legal risks. Studies show that 71% of companies cannot locate at least 10% of their signed contracts [1], contributing to an estimated 9% annual revenue leakage [2]. Inadequate CLM – marked by missing contracts, manual errors, and siloed processes – can result in missed obligations, disputes, and regulatory compliance failures.

Despite numerous CLM software solutions in the market, over half of firms (55–70%) still lack an efficient, centralized system for managing contracts [3]. Common pain points include fragmented document repositories, lengthy negotiation cycles, poor visibility into contract performance, and challenges in protecting confidential terms. Traditional approaches often rely on disparate databases and email, which are prone to human error and security breaches. The consequences range from financial loss and damaged business relationships to fines for privacy and compliance violations.

Decot aims to transform digital contracting by addressing these challenges with a next-generation, blockchain-powered CLM platform. This whitepaper outlines Decot’s solution: a decentralized system that uses blockchain technology to provide a single source of truth and automation for contract workflows, combined with zero-knowledge proofs (ZKPs) and encryption to preserve confidentiality. In the following sections, we detail how Decot’s Web3 approach enhances trust, efficiency, and security in contract management while meeting enterprise requirements for privacy and compliance.

Key challenges in traditional contract management include:

• Fragmented Records: Contracts stored across multiple systems and inboxes, making it hard to find the latest versions and track obligations.
• Lack of Trust & Transparency: Each party maintains their own records, leading to version conflicts and no shared source of truth.
• Manual, Inefficient Processes: Reliance on paper or email for signatures, approvals, and reminders slows down deal cycles and increases labor costs.
• Security & Confidentiality Risks: Sensitive contract data in centralized repositories can be tampered with or breached, and sharing data with partners raises privacy concerns.

These pain points drive up costs and expose businesses to legal risks. The need for a secure, transparent, and efficient CLM approach is evident. This is where blockchain and related Web3 technologies present a unique opportunity.

Blockchain technology offers a tamper-proof, shared ledger ideally suited to CLM needs. By recording every contract action on an immutable ledger, all parties can rely on a single source of truth for contract status, changes, and audit trails. Smart contracts (programs on the blockchain) can automate business rules – for example, automatically releasing a payment upon contract signing – thus reducing administrative overhead. Early enterprise trials have shown that automating CLM steps via smart contracts can cut management costs significantly [4]. However, naively putting contracts on a public blockchain introduces a serious concern: privacy. Companies cannot expose sensitive terms (prices, trade secrets, personal data) on a public ledger [5], [6].

Zero-knowledge proofs (ZKPs) solve this privacy challenge by allowing verification of facts without revealing underlying data. With ZKPs, one can prove statements like “Party X has signed the contract” or “the contract amount is below a threshold” to the blockchain record, without disclosing the actual signature or amount [7]. In essence, ZKPs enable “verify without reveal” [8]. Combined with encrypting the contract content off-chain, this ensures that contracts remain confidential even as their existence and integrity are validated on a shared ledger. This powerful combination – blockchain for integrity and ZKP- driven cryptography for confidentiality – lies at the core of Decot’s solution.

Decot’s platform leverages the Sui blockchain, advanced cryptography, and user-friendly Web3 tools to create a decentralized yet private contract management system. The architecture is designed to meet enterprise requirements for security, privacy, and performance. Key components of the Decot solution include:

• Sui Blockchain & Smart Contracts: A high-performance Layer-1 blockchain where each contract is represented as a digital asset (object). Sui’s object-centric model allows each contract to have its own state and lifecycle on-chain [10]. Smart contracts (written in Sui’s safe Move language) enforce business rules and state transitions (e.g., draft → signed → executed) with immutable transaction history. Sui was chosen for its fast parallel execution and low fees (on the order of fractions of a cent per transaction [11]), ensuring the platform scales without excessive cost.
• Walrus Decentralized Storage: Off-chain storage network used to store the actual contract documents and attachments in encrypted form. Rather than relying on centralized servers, Decot uses Walrus – a decentralized data hosting solution in the Sui ecosystem – to ensure documents are tamper-resistant and highly available across many nodes. Each file is stored off-chain and referenced on-chain by its cryptographic hash (fingerprint) [12]. This way, the blockchain stores proof of the document (the hash) without exposing its contents. Walrus serves as the primary storage backbone, with an option for a secure private cloud fallback if required for compliance (though the emphasis is on the decentralized approach).
• SEAL (Secrets Management on Sui): To protect confidentiality, Decot encrypts all contract files and secrets. The SEAL protocol on Sui (developed by Mysten Labs) is utilized for managing encryption keys and access control policies in a decentralized manner [13]. SEAL provides on-chain governance of who can decrypt data and off-chain services to generate decryption keys. Using SEAL, only authorized parties (e.g., the contract’s participants) can retrieve and decrypt a document from Walrus, ensuring that sensitive content is never exposed to unauthorized users. This forms a robust, on-chain decentralized secrets management system for contract data.
• Custom ZK Login (User Onboarding): Users interact with Decot through a 3-step custom ZK login flow designed for non-crypto teams. Users sign in with familiar identity methods, complete a secure authentication challenge, and enter a protected workspace without requiring browser wallet extensions or direct key management. This keeps onboarding simple while preserving strong on-chain security.
• Zero-Knowledge Proof Module: Within the platform, a ZKP engine is used to generate and verify proofs for critical operations. For example, when a user signs a contract, the system can produce a ZKP attesting to the signature’s validity or that a specific clause is present, without revealing the actual signature content or clause text. The Sui smart contracts are designed to verify these proofs on-chain [9], enabling trustless validation of contract conditions (e.g., compliance checks) while the underlying data remains encrypted. This component ensures that Decot’s ledger can be audited and used for compliance evidence without exposing private details.
• Decot Web Application: A user-friendly web interface ties everything together, allowing legal and business users to create, review, and manage contracts without needing blockchain expertise. The app interacts with Sui, Walrus, and SEAL behind the scenes. Public API integrations are under development; current integration capabilities are managed through controlled/internal channels.

To illustrate how these components work together, consider the lifecycle of a contract on the Decot platform:

1. Contract Creation: Alice (from Company A) initiates a new contract via the Decot web app. She uploads the contract document (e.g., a PDF or Word file). The document is automatically encrypted in her browser, and the encrypted file is stored on the Walrus network. Decot records the file’s hash on the blockchain by calling a Sui smart contract (e.g., a createContract function).
2. On-Chain Registration: The smart contract creates a new contract object on Sui, including metadata such as a unique contract ID, references to the parties (Alice and Bob’s blockchain addresses), the hash pointer to the encrypted document on Walrus, and the current status (e.g., “Draft”). At this point, the contract is visible on-chain (an entry indicating that a contract exists between A and B), but the contents remain encrypted off-chain.
3. Invitation & Sharing: Bob (from Company B) is notified about the contract (via an in-app notification or an email with a contract link). Using Decot custom ZK login, Bob signs in to the Decot app. The app fetches the encrypted contract from Walrus and, via SEAL’s key management, ensures Bob can decrypt and read it (Bob is listed as an authorized party in the contract’s access policy, so he obtains a decryption key through SEAL).
4. Negotiation & Editing (Optional): If changes are needed, Alice and Bob can iterate on the contract. Edits produce a new encrypted document version on Walrus, and the on-chain record is updated (or a new version object is linked to the original) with a new hash and perhaps a status change (e.g., back to “Draft” or “Amended”). Every update action is a transaction signed by the parties and recorded immutably, preserving a full history of revisions.
5. Approval & Signing: When both parties are satisfied, Bob formally approves the contract. He uses the Decot app to sign the contract by invoking the smart contract’s approval function. Decot presents a secure signing prompt and finalizes the transaction on Sui. This updates the contract object’s status to “Signed” and logs Bob’s approval (for instance, storing a hash of Bob’s signature or a ZKP proving Bob’s signature without revealing it). Alice then countersigns in a similar manner via her wallet. Once both signatures are recorded, the on-chain status moves to “Executed” (fully signed).
6. Zero-Knowledge Verification: As part of the signing process or afterwards, ZKPs can be generated for compliance or audit purposes. For example, a ZKP might prove that “the contract contains Clause X” or “both required signatures are present” without exposing the actual document text. These proofs can be stored on-chain or provided off-chain to auditors/regulators, satisfying external checks without leaking sensitive information.
7. Post-Execution Management: The finalized contract (encrypted) remains on Walrus, accessible only to authorized parties. The on-chain record now serves as an immutable audit trail of the contract’s lifecycle – it shows when the contract was created, who signed it, and when. If a dispute arises, either party (or an auditor) can retrieve the document from Walrus, verify its integrity against the on-chain hash, and even use ZKPs to demonstrate certain facts (e.g., a timestamp of signing) to a court or arbitrator without revealing confidential details. If the contract has milestones or renewal dates, smart contract logic or off-chain services can trigger reminders or even automated actions (such as releasing a payment via an integrated escrow smart contract) when conditions are met.

By implementing the above architecture, Decot’s solution delivers significant benefits over traditional CLM systems:

• Single Source of Truth: All parties share the same tamper-proof record of the contract and its status. This greatly reduces disagreements arising from version confusion or unauthorized changes. No single company or administrator can unilaterally alter or delete the contract history, fostering higher inter-organizational trust.
• Enhanced Trust & Transparency: Every action (drafting, approval, signature, amendment) is immutably logged with timestamps. Stakeholders and auditors can trust that the record is complete and unforgeable. This transparency, coupled with selective disclosure via ZKPs, means compliance checks or audits can be performed with confidence in the data’s integrity.
• Privacy Preservation: Unlike typical blockchain solutions, Decot keeps contract contents confidential. ZKPs allow verification of compliance or the presence of certain clauses without revealing the actual content [9]. Sensitive data remains encrypted, addressing the primary barrier to using blockchain in enterprise contracting. As one legal expert noted, this approach is “like having our cake and eating it too,” enabling the benefits of a shared platform without exposing private details (Badocco, 2025, Appendix).
• Process Efficiency & Automation: Routine processes (sending reminders, tracking approvals, enforcing deadlines) can be automated via smart contracts and integration with existing tools. This cuts manual work and speeds up cycle times. Studies suggest that automation can reduce CLM process costs significantly [19]. Faster contract closures mean quicker time-to-revenue and fewer administrative bottlenecks.
• Security & Data Integrity: Storing contract data on Walrus and recording hashes on Sui adds resilience against data loss or tampering. Documents are cryptographically hashed and distributed; any unauthorized change to a document would be immediately detectable by a hash mismatch. The risk of internal fraud or accidental alteration is minimized. Additionally, the use of Sui’s Move smart contracts, which emphasize safe asset management, reduces vulnerabilities (e.g. eliminating certain bugs common in Ethereum contracts [23]).
• Cost Savings at Scale: Traditional CLM software often comes with hefty SaaS licensing fees. In contrast, Decot’s on-chain transactions cost only fractions of a cent each [11], and storage on decentralized networks can be more cost-effective for large volumes of data. Over many contracts, this model can lower total cost of ownership. Improved efficiency also directly saves money by reducing contract cycle times and avoiding penalties from missed obligations or expirations [20].
• Regulatory Compliance & Trustworthiness: Decot’s platform is built to comply with emerging regulations for electronic records. For instance, new EU rules (Regulation (EU) 2024/1183) recognize qualified blockchain ledgers as legally trustworthy records [22]. By leveraging such a ledger, contracts managed on Decot could enjoy presumptions of integrity and authenticity across all EU member states. ZKPs further help in aligning with data protection laws (like GDPR) by proving facts about personal data processing without exposing the data itself [26]. In essence, Decot provides provable compliance – it can demonstrate that proper approvals and clauses exist (and have not been altered), satisfying auditors or regulators while keeping confidential details hidden. This combination of transparency and privacy is ideal for highly regulated sectors.
• Market Differentiation: In a crowded CLM market, Decot stands out by offering “provable compliance and tamper-proof contract management”. Traditional CLM vendors require trust in a central repository and struggle to connect multiple organizations on one platform. Decot’s decentralized model enables cross- company workflows on a neutral, secure infrastructure. Unlike private or permissioned blockchains that some competitors explore [25], Decot uses a public blockchain (for broad security and interoperability) but with privacy enhancements to avoid exposing sensitive data. This approach is highly novel – delivering both the broad trust of a public network and the confidentiality often only seen in siloed enterprise systems. The result is a CLM solution well-suited for industries where security and privacy are paramount (finance, healthcare, government, etc.), giving Decot a strong value proposition for enterprise clients and a competitive edge for enterprise adoption.

Implementing a blockchain-based CLM solution requires careful attention to user adoption, legal alignment, and technical integration. Decot’s strategy addresses these aspects as follows:

• User Onboarding & Experience: Recognizing that not all users are familiar with crypto wallets, Decot emphasizes a seamless experience through its custom ZK login flow. Users sign in with familiar identity methods and complete a simple 3-step process, making the transition to Web3 nearly invisible. The web interface is designed to be intuitive and similar to existing e-signature and document-management tools. By reducing complexity and providing training resources, Decot lowers the barrier to entry for legal and procurement teams.
• Integration with Existing Systems: Public API integrations are not yet generally available. Decot currently supports integration planning through controlled/internal channels and a partner rollout model. This staged approach allows organizations to prepare CRM/ERP/document-repository workflows safely while broad API access is finalized.
• Legal and Regulatory Alignment: Decot’s model was developed with legal input to ensure enforceability and compliance. Each on-chain contract record can be linked to a traditional signed document (if needed) to satisfy any legal form requirements or record-keeping regulations. The platform supports digital signatures in line with eIDAS and other e-signature laws, giving legal equivalence to the on-chain approvals. Moreover, Decot is monitoring and aligning with evolving regulations such as the EU’s electronic ledger standards [22]. By proactively engaging with legal advisors (and where appropriate, regulators), Decot ensures that contracts executed on its platform are recognized and admissible. The cryptographic audit trails and ZKP-based proofs can be packaged as evidence for legal proceedings if required, bridging the gap between new technology and existing legal frameworks.
• Security Audits & Trust: Understanding the critical nature of contract data, Decot undergoes rigorous security audits for its smart contracts and infrastructure. Sui’s Move language provides a safer smart contract foundation by design [23], but Decot will still employ third-party auditors to review code and protocols. Additionally, key management via SEAL removes single points of failure by decentralizing secret storage [13]. In the event a vulnerability is discovered, the platform’s modular design (and Sui’s upgradeable code features) allow for prompt patches or module replacements with minimal downtime. Building user trust also involves transparency about security practices and quick response to any incidents, ensuring that clients feel confident in the system’s integrity.
• Scalability & Performance: Decot’s choice of the Sui blockchain ensures high throughput and low latency. Sui can process many transactions in parallel (crucial when multiple contracts are being updated or signed simultaneously) [24]. Off-chain storage on Walrus prevents blockchain bloat and keeps on-chain transactions lightweight. The architecture also leaves room to leverage future scaling solutions – for instance, adding a Layer-2 network or sharding if transaction volume grows substantially. For ZKP operations, Decot uses efficient proving systems and offloads heavy computations to user devices or servers (so the blockchain only needs to verify small proofs). As ZKP technology and hardware continue to advance, the performance of privacy features will only improve, allowing Decot to comfortably handle enterprise contract volumes.
• Change Management: Adopting Decot may require shifts in how legal and business teams handle contracts. To ease this transition, Decot supports clients with change management resources – for example, guidance on updating internal policies to recognize blockchain records, training on wallet backup/recovery procedures, and templates for new contract clauses that reference on-chain execution. By piloting the system in a controlled environment and gradually expanding usage, organizations can acclimate users to the new processes. Internal “champions” and cross- departmental workshops (bringing together legal, IT, and procurement) can help address concerns and demonstrate the platform’s value. Demonstrating early ROI (such as faster contract closures or improved compliance reporting) will be key to driving broader adoption across the enterprise.

Decot’s privacy-preserving CLM platform represents a fusion of blockchain innovation with practical business needs. By combining an immutable, transparent ledger with zero-knowledge proof privacy, Decot resolves the long-standing tension between security and confidentiality in multi-party contract management. Our proposed architecture – informed by extensive research and expert insights – demonstrates that it is feasible to modernize contract management without sacrificing control over sensitive data.

The benefits in trust, efficiency, and compliance readiness are clear. Companies using Decot can expect fewer contract disputes (thanks to a shared, verifiable record), faster deal cycles through automation, and stronger compliance via built-in audit trails and proofs. Moreover, in an environment of increasing cybersecurity threats and stringent data regulations, having a system that provides both data integrity and privacy is a strategic advantage.

Moving forward, Decot plans to pilot this solution in real-world settings. Key steps include working with select partner clients to implement initial deployments, gathering feedback from legal and IT stakeholders, and refining the platform’s features and user experience. We will also continue to engage with regulatory bodies to ensure that Decot’s blockchain records and processes meet emerging legal standards for digital contracts. Investment in robust governance frameworks (defining how identities, permissions, and dispute resolution are managed on the platform) will accompany the technical rollout, ensuring all stakeholders have confidence in using the system.

Decot is poised to become a leader in next-generation contract management, enabling a more secure, efficient, and collaborative way of handling agreements. As we implement and scale this platform, we envision opportunities to integrate additional capabilities – for instance, linking with digital identity services for instant counterparty verification, or incorporating decentralized finance (DeFi) escrow payments that auto-execute when contract conditions are met. Such features would further blur the line between contracts and live business processes, unlocking new value and automation.

In conclusion, Decot offers a compelling proposition to enterprises and strategic partners alike: a cutting-edge Web3 solution that tackles a universal business challenge. By leveraging blockchain and ZKPs, Decot not only improves CLM outcomes (reducing value leakage, enhancing compliance) but also ushers in a new era where inter-company workflows can be trusted and automated without central gatekeepers. We invite stakeholders to join us in transforming contract management for the digital age, creating a future where agreements are smarter, more secure, and inherently trustworthy.

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Note: This whitepaper incorporates content and data from a dissertation submitted by Toulis, K. to Ulster University in 2025, which served as a foundational research source during its compilation.