Zcash Holders Back Faster Blocks, Retain Bitcoin-Style Halvings
Zcash is a privacy-focused blockchain that uses zero-knowledge proofs and follows Bitcoin’s model of a 21 million-token supply cap and periodic reward halvings. NU7, its next major network upgrade, is important because it will shape transaction speeds, ZEC issuance and the retirement of Sprout, the network’s original and now-outdated privacy protocol. The choices affect both user experience and confidence in Zcash’s monetary policy.
Results released on Sept. 14, 2026, showed nearly 2.4 million ZEC participated, about 66% of the roughly 3.6 million eligible at the snapshot and well above the 1 million-ZEC threshold. Of participating tokens, 99.9% backed cutting the target block interval to 25 seconds from 75, while 98.9% favored retaining scheduled halvings. Holders also supported narrowing NU7’s scope to features ready by Sept. 30, shipping the upgrade as soon as possible and disabling Sprout transactions.
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The history behind this eventZakura Cuts Zcash Private Transaction Waits Below 200 Milliseconds
Zcash uses zero-knowledge proofs to shield transaction details, but generating those proofs on mobile devices has remained a key source of friction. The delay is especially noticeable when users send ZEC from a phone, limiting the practicality of private payments. Faster client-side proving could make shielded transactions feel closer to conventional digital payments and improve their usability in mobile wallets.
Zakura has introduced a new cryptographic architecture and the Zakura Common toolkit that increase mobile proof-generation speed by more than 14 times. The upgrade could reduce the wait for a Zcash private transaction from about three seconds to less than 200 milliseconds. It can be adopted without a Zcash network upgrade, allowing wallet developers to address one of the most visible delays facing users who send shielded ZEC.
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