The @injective network activated its Meridian mainnet upgrade on September 24, 2026, marking one of the most consequential changes to the chain since its launch. The upgrade, formally designated IIP-701, passed governance with near-unanimous backing before going live.
Compliance Built Into the Protocol
At its core, Meridian introduces regulated token standards on Injective's EVM layer. The upgrade adds support for regulated token implementations, letting issuers embed compliance and transfer requirements directly into tokenized products. That means compliance becomes a protocol-level feature rather than an application-level add-on: when regulatory requirements live at the token standard level, every application built on top inherits those protections automatically, and issuers do not need to build custom compliance solutions for each deployment.
The upgrade, IIP-701, passed with roughly 99% staker approval and introduces a regulated token standard on Injective's EVM, allowing issuers to embed compliance directly into tokenized real-world assets and equities, building on Injective's SEC transfer agent registration from August. The vote result itself was not unusual for the network. The 99% approval rate, while striking, is not unprecedented for Injective. The prior Vulcan upgrade also received over 99% staker support.
Meridian is the latest step in a deliberate build sequence. The Injective Mint tool launched in July 2026, providing the tooling for token creation, and SEC transfer agent registration followed in August. The project says it has handled $6.8 billion in cumulative RWA volume, with its institutions page listing more than 500 on-chain assets and roughly 56.9 million $INJ staked.
Private Institutional Trading Enters Testing
Meridian also adds an exchange precompile, private RFQ testing, stronger oracles, and tightened execution and risk controls to accelerate crypto token launches, tokenized equities, RWA issuance, and institutional DeFi adoption.
The proposal lays groundwork for privacy-focused infrastructure, introducing early testing of private request-for-quote transaction flows. Those controlled environments are designed to give institutions access to onchain liquidity while shielding sensitive trading and order information, ahead of a broader privacy suite expected in a later upgrade. That broader suite is tied to CypherOS, Injective's native privacy platform, with Meridian advancing Injective's position as the premier blockchain for institutional-grade tokenization while laying the foundation for the future CypherOS launch.
The upgrade also tightens core infrastructure. Meridian further tightens market execution, risk controls, transaction signing, and oracle processing, with improved oracle prioritization and relay validation aimed at more dependable pricing for tokenized equities, RWAs, and derivatives.
Sources
Crypto Briefing: Injective Meridian mainnet upgrade proposal passes with 99% support
Blockchain Reporter: Injective Meridian Upgrade Targets September 24
Crypto Briefing: Injective Mint launches unified platform for institutional-grade tokenization
