You can swap crypto privately through deposit-based services such as Houdini Swap, RocketX and ClearSwap, or through shielded services such as Railgun, Privacy Cash or Hinkal. Rubic Private Mode puts the deposit-based routes for your transfer side by side, so you can find a private route without choosing a provider first.

Which one fits depends on the job. Swapping one token for another, moving the same token to a fresh wallet and moving between chains are three different tasks, and no single service does all three well. It also depends on who you want kept out. A deposit-based service hides your trail from people watching the chain, but sees both ends itself. A shielded pool has no one in the middle, but stays on its own chain and only hides you as well as the crowd inside it.

This is a shortlist of services you can use today, sorted by task, with the trade-off each one makes.

Private swap and transfer services by use case

Private swaps. You send one asset and receive another, and the public trail from the first doesn’t lead to the second. Houdini Swap, RocketX and ClearSwap do this through their own routes, and Rubic Private Mode compares them for your pair. Railgun can swap privately too, but only inside its pool on its own chains.

Same-asset transfers. You send USDT and receive USDT at a wallet with no public history linking it to yours. Rubic calls this private transfers. Railgun and Privacy Cash get there differently: you deposit into the pool and later withdraw to the new address. Zama keeps the amount encrypted but leaves sender and receiver visible.

Cross-chain transfers. You move value from one network to another without an obvious link between the two ends. This is where deposit-based services lead: Houdini Swap and RocketX cover networks including Bitcoin, Solana, Tron, XRP, and hundreds more. Shielded pools generally don’t move funds between chains privately.

Platform	Tasks it supports	Why choose it	Limitations
Rubic Private Mode	Private swaps, same-asset and cross-chain transfers, through the providers it routes to	Compares Houdini Swap, RocketX and ClearSwap routes (with more to come), with fee and time shown before you confirm; Rubic never holds your funds	Privacy and custody are the route provider’s; no shielded-pool routes
Houdini Swap	Private swaps, cross-chain transfers, same-asset sends	Wide network coverage, including chains no shielded pool reaches; one simple flow	Sees both ends of the route; private routes can take up to 50 minutes and cost up to 1.2-1.6%
RocketX	Private swaps and cross-chain transfers, including Bitcoin, Solana, XRP and Tron	Splits the route across two exchange partners; 5–10 minutes at about 0.8%	RocketX itself sees the whole route
ClearSwap	Private swaps, same-chain and cross-chain transfers on Ethereum, Arbitrum, Polygon, BNB Chain, Base, Optimism, Avalanche, Solana and Tron.	About 3 minutes; a simple way to move USDT and other tokens to a fresh wallet	Sees both ends of the route
Railgun	Shielded transfers and swaps on Ethereum, BNB Chain, Polygon and Arbitrum	No operator sees both ends; the longest track record among active shielded pools; built for holding a private balance	Those four chains only; shielding can take up to an hour; 0.25% in and 0.25% out, plus gas
Privacy Cash	Private transfers and swaps, mostly on Solana (also Ethereum, Base, BNB, Robinhood)	Up to a minute; no operator in the middle; 0.35% plus network fees	Protection depends on pool activity; small pools, distinctive amounts and close timing can link deposits to withdrawals
Hinkal	Private transfers and swaps (same-chain and cross-chain) on Ethereum, Solana, TRON and other major EVM networks	Self-custodial private balances controlled by your existing wallet; KYT screening on deposits; no new wallet needed	0.25% on most operations (top-ups free); had a July 2026 exploit (~797k USDC); some flows rely on relayers and screening
Zama	Confidential transfers of encrypted token versions on Ethereum	Flat fee per transaction, so large amounts cost little; amounts and balances stay encrypted	Hides amounts, not who sends to whom; Ethereum only; you convert tokens first

Fees and times move with routes and market conditions, so check the live quote.

Rubic Private Mode, shielded services, and privacy coins

Rubic Private Mode. Rubic is a cross-chain and privacy aggregator. Private Mode doesn’t add a privacy mechanism of its own. It shows the private routes from Houdini Swap, RocketX and ClearSwap (with more providers to join over time) for your exact pair, each with its fee, expected time and provider, and lets you confirm from one wallet flow. Private routes also appear in the main swap screen with a “private” label, next to regular quotes for the same pair.

Rubic is worth considering when you want to find a private route without picking a provider first, or when you’re moving between chains and don’t want to check several apps. The provider behind the route you choose determines how the transaction works and what information it retains. Rubic routes and never holds your funds.

Shielded services. Railgun, Privacy Cash, Hinkal, and Zama work differently: there’s no operator receiving your deposit and sending the output. You interact with a smart contract and prove ownership with zero-knowledge proofs (Railgun, Privacy Cash, Hinkal) or hold encrypted token balances (Zama). Rubic doesn’t route to them, because deposit-based routes are the ones that work across chains. If you want no service to see both ends, use these directly.

Privacy-native coins. Some people skip privacy services and swap into a privacy coin. Monero hides the sender, receiver and amount by default; Zcash does the same only for shielded addresses. Rubic supports cross-chain swaps into both. The leg into XMR or ZEC is still public on the chain you leave, and ZEC sent to a transparent address hides nothing.

Privacy, custody, availability and costs

Privacy. Every option here is pseudonymous, not anonymous. Each shields you from market participants, not from auditors. Deposit-based services break the public onchain link between your deposit and the delivery, but the service itself sees both. That’s a property of the design, and it’s also what lets these services screen transactions. Shielded pools have no one in the middle, but hide you only among other users of the same pool. Zama hides amounts and balances, not counterparties.

Custody. With a deposit-based route you send funds to the provider’s deposit address, and the provider holds them until it delivers the output. With a shielded pool your funds sit in a smart contract that only your keys can withdraw from, so the risk shifts to the contract itself (and it’s real). Rubic doesn’t hold funds at any step, whichever provider you pick.

Availability. Coverage is the biggest practical difference. Deposit-based services reach the most networks, up to 200+. Railgun covers Ethereum, BNB Chain, Polygon and Arbitrum; Privacy Cash is Solana-native, but also covers Ethereum, Base, BNB, Robinhood; Zama is Ethereum-only. 

Costs. The architecture sets the price. Deposit-based routes pay for real exchange legs and charge a percentage, from about 0.3% to 1.6% in our benchmark. Railgun charges 0.25% on the way in and again on the way out, plus gas. Zama charges a flat fee, so it gets cheaper relative to size as the amount grows. Compare within one type first, then decide which type you need.

A few things leak whichever option you pick. The transactions into and out of the service are public; privacy covers the link between them, not their existence. Distinctive amounts are easy to match, so round or split them. Withdrawing seconds after depositing narrows the crowd you hide in. And sending the fresh wallet’s funds straight back to your old one undoes the work.

Which platform should you choose?

Start with who you’re hiding from. If it’s people watching the chain (traders, scammers, the coworker who knows your address), every option here works. Match the task:

Your situation	Where to look first	Why
Moving between chains	Rubic Private Mode, Houdini Swap, RocketX	Shielded pools stay on one chain; deposit-based services cross them
Swapping one token for another, on one chain or across chains	Rubic Private Mode	Houdini Swap, RocketX and ClearSwap quotes side by side
Breaking the link between wallets (like sending USDT on Tron to a fresh wallet)	Rubic Private Mode	Unlink transfer, same chain and token
A quick same-asset unlink on Solana	Privacy Cash	Fast and on-chain, if the pool is busy enough
Holding a private balance on Ethereum or an L2 for weeks	Railgun	A pool is built for staying in, not passing through
A large amount on Ethereum where the amount is the sensitive part	Zama	Flat fee and encrypted amounts; counterparties stay visible
No service should see both ends	Railgun or Privacy Cash, Hinkal	No operator in the middle
Not sure which provider fits	Rubic Private Mode	Fee, time and provider for each route on one screen

For the steps, see How to make a private swap on Rubic.

FAQ

Where can I swap crypto privately?

Deposit-based services such as Houdini Swap, RocketX and ClearSwap handle private swaps and cover the most chains, but the service sees both ends of the route. Shielded services such as Railgun and Privacy Cash have no operator in the middle but stay on their own chains. Rubic Private Mode shows Houdini Swap, RocketX and ClearSwap routes for your transfer on one screen, so you can compare before choosing.

What are the best tools for private cross-chain transfers?

Deposit-based services, because shielded pools generally don’t move funds between chains privately. Houdini Swap and RocketX cover networks including Bitcoin, Solana and Tron. Rubic Private Mode compares their routes for the same transfer, with fee and expected time shown before you confirm.

When does Rubic fit better than a direct provider?

When you haven’t picked a provider yet, or when you’re moving between chains and want to see which provider covers your pair and at what price. Going direct fits better if you’ve already chosen a provider and want its own app, or if you want a shielded pool, which Rubic doesn’t route to.

Does a private route hide the transfer from its provider?

No, not on deposit-based routes. Houdini Swap, RocketX and ClearSwap see both your deposit and the delivery; what they hide is the public link between the two. Shielded pools such as Railgun and Privacy Cash have no provider in that position, though the deposit into the pool and the withdrawal from it are still public. Rubic routes the transaction and doesn’t hold your funds.

Is a private swap the same as using a mixer?

No. The services here route a swap through exchanges or use zero-knowledge pools with screening at deposit. Rubic is an aggregator: it routes to third-party providers and never pools or holds user funds.

Last verified: 4 November 2026