> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.zirodelta.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.zirodelta.com/start-here/how-it-works.md).

# How Zirodelta works

## The problem

Most apps that hold money let it sit idle. Wallets, marketplaces, payment apps and prepaid systems all hold balances that do nothing while they wait to be spent. When an app wants those balances to do more, it has to build or rent yield, lending, conversion and settlement one by one, each on its own ledger, none of them talking to the others.

## The design: three layers

| Layer                              | What it is                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           |
| ---------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Apps**                           | The products people use. Each app connects to the engine and switches on the modules it needs.                                                                                                                                                                                                                       |
| **The Zirodelta Financial Engine** | Seven modules: [Yield](/modules/yield-engine.md), [Credit](/modules/credit-engine.md), [Conversion](/modules/conversion-engine.md), [Settlement](/modules/settlement-engine.md), [Treasury](/modules/treasury-engine.md), [Fiat rails](/modules/fiat-rails.md) and the [Referral Graph](/modules/referral-graph.md). |
| **The shared balance sheet**       | One record of what each account holds, owes and earns, read and written by every module. See [Shared balance sheet](/modules/shared-balance-sheet.md).                                                                                                                                                               |

Because every module works on the same record, a balance that earns can also back a loan and pay at a till, without moving between systems.

## How an app uses it

* The app keeps its users, its brand and its interface. The modules run underneath.
* The app starts with the module its users need most and adds others as they ship.
* The app decides who earns: the app itself, its users, or both.
* Zirodelta earns a share of what the modules generate. There is no license fee. See [Business model](/for-apps/business-model.md).

## Where money is allowed to go

Two rules shape every module:

1. **Licensed local partners.** In each country, money moves through partners licensed for that activity, and client money only goes where the local rules allow. See [Partners and compliance](/for-apps/partners-and-compliance.md).
2. **Risk sits with Zirodelta first.** Client money goes to the safest place the rules allow. Riskier roles, such as absorbing first losses or funding advances, are filled by Zirodelta's own capital.

## Networks used today

* **Solana** for wallets and tokens: USDC, SOL, ZDLT, and wzdUSD once it is live.
* **Hyperliquid and HyperEVM** for the Yield Engine's strategy and its vault contract.
* **Circle CCTP** is the design for moving USDC between networks.


---

# Agent Instructions
This documentation is published with GitBook. GitBook is the documentation platform designed so that both humans and AI agents can read, navigate, and reason over technical content effectively. Learn more at gitbook.com.

## Querying This Documentation
If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the following URL with the `ask` and `goal` query parameters:

```
GET https://docs.zirodelta.com/start-here/how-it-works.md?ask=<question>&goal=<user_goal>
```

`ask` is the immediate question: it should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
`goal` is what the user is ultimately trying to achieve, the reason they need the answer. Sharing it helps GitBook give you a better, more relevant answer. A goal is most helpful when it describes the outcome the user wants rather than restating the question. For example, with `ask=how do I create an API token`, a goal like `automate deployments from our CI pipeline` lets GitBook tailor the answer to that use case.

The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.

Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.