Besu

Hyperledger Besu is an open-source Ethereum client written in Java. It was originally released under the name Pantheon by ConsenSys in 2019 and later contributed to the Hyperledger project, where it is maintained under the Linux Foundation. Besu is designed for enterprise use, offering tools to run both public Ethereum networks and permissioned private networks. It supports the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) and Solidity smart contracts, with APIs for developers including JSON-RPC, REST, and GraphQL.

Besu supports multiple consensus mechanisms. On public networks, it can operate with Ethash proof-of-work. For private or consortium networks, it provides proof-of-authority variants such as IBFT 2.0 and Aura, as well as the Clique PoA protocol. It includes node and network permissioning to control which nodes can join and participate in consensus, and it supports private transactions through integration with privacy managers like Orion or Tessera.

The client runs on the Java Virtual Machine, aligning with common enterprise IT environments. It is distributed under the Apache 2.0 license and has an active community contributing to its development, documentation, and user support. Besu is used by organizations that require auditable, permissioned blockchain infrastructure, the ability to connect private networks to the public Ethereum ecosystem, and compliance with enterprise security and governance requirements.