Zcash News: Core developers launch cashZ wallet with a new approach, further strengthening privacy features

Amidst the spotlight on privacy coins, the Zcash core development team, after officially leaving Electric Coin Company (ECC), quickly announced the launch of a brand new Zcash wallet product, cashZ. This move is seen as a significant shift in the governance and philosophy of the Zcash ecosystem and further reinforces its commitment to privacy and the cypherpunk spirit.

Former ECC CEO Josh Swihart stated that the original team responsible for launching Zcash and developing the official wallet Zashi will develop a new wallet, cashZ, based on the existing Zashi codebase, which is expected to go live in the coming weeks. Existing Zashi users can seamlessly migrate to cashZ. The new wallet will not issue any new tokens, and the core goal remains to expand and improve the Zcash ecosystem.

It is worth noting that just a few hours before this announcement, the team confirmed that they had collectively exited ECC due to disagreements over non-profit organization rules and governance structure. Swihart emphasized that the team remains 100% focused on full-stack development of Zcash. Leaving ECC is aimed at more efficiently advancing the product and technology, not splitting the project.

In further explaining the motivation, Swihart pointed out that Zcash is fundamentally rooted in cypherpunk culture, and privacy should be a default right like cash, rather than an optional feature. Compared to non-profit organizations emphasizing process and compliance, startups have advantages in innovation speed, decision-making efficiency, and execution, which are especially critical for the evolution of privacy technology.

He also mentioned that over the past two years, Zcash has ceased to be a small experimental project and now needs to continuously expand within the competitive landscape of mainstream blockchains like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana. This demands higher organizational standards. Rapid iteration around Zcash wallets, privacy payments, and censorship-resistant tools is an important background for the new company’s formation.

Market-wise, due to internal turmoil, the price of ZEC previously dropped over 21% and briefly fell below $400. After the cashZ announcement, ZEC experienced a slight rebound, rising to around $430. Nevertheless, ZEC remains significantly below its all-time high in 2016 and below the phased high in 2025.

From the perspective of privacy cryptocurrencies and the Zcash wallet track, the launch of cashZ is not only a product update but also reflects a re-positioning of the Zcash ecosystem in governance, philosophy, and execution approach. Its subsequent development remains worth ongoing attention.