Kross Protocol will build verification infrastructure ahead of its mainnet upgrade in June by bringing blockchain security firm CertiK on board as a new validator.

Kross Protocol said on May 20 it signed a memorandum of understanding with CertiK to cooperate on validator operations.

Under the agreement, CertiK will participate as an operator of an independent validator node on Kross Protocol. Validators verify transactions on a blockchain network and participate in block production.

Kross Protocol is set to upgrade to Mainnet 2.0, dubbed "Breakpoint", on June 1. The core plan is to shift from an existing holding-oriented structure to a participation-based network, and it recently recorded about 98 percent approval in a governance vote. CertiK will take part in the network's decentralisation and verification process.

CertiK is a Web3 security company that provides digital asset security services and compliance solutions. It has detected more than 180,000 code vulnerabilities and protected more than $600 billion in digital assets to date. In April, it launched an artificial intelligence-based system called "AI Auditor".

Nexth signed an MOU with CertiK in December last year for broad cooperation across security, audits and infrastructure. This validator participation was made as an extension of the existing cooperation. During the node participation process, discussions were also made public as Jang Hyun-kuk (장현국), CEO of Nexth, disclosed the plan to introduce validators on X, formerly Twitter, and Ronghui Gu responded.

Jang said, "CertiK is one of the most trusted companies in the global blockchain security sector," adding, "Through this cooperation, we will be able to raise the security and reliability of Kross Protocol by another step."