Zcash (ZEC) is a cryptocurrency forked from Bitcoin in 2016, designed to offer enhanced user privacy.
The network uses a technology called zk-SNARKs, which is a security protocol that allows transactions to be verified without revealing the sender, recipient, or amount.
Zcash uses the Equihash algorithm for mining, which differs from Bitcoin’s SHA-256, and is best mined using Application-Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs).
Zcash uses a mining algorithm called Equihash. This is different from Bitcoin’s SHA-256, so miners need specific hardware to mine ZEC.
Introduction
Launched in 2016 by Zooko Wilcox O'Hearn and a group of scientists, Zcash began as a project called Zerocoin (later Zerocash). It was built as a hard fork of the Bitcoin codebase with a specific focus on security and anonymity, allowing users to shield their financial data from public view.
How Zcash Works: Privacy and zk-SNARKs
The core technology used by Zcash is a cryptographic tool known as zk-SNARKs (Zero-Knowledge Succinct Non-Interactive Argument of Knowledge).
In a typical crypto transaction, the network confirms a payment by looking at the sender's address and the amount. It’s like writing a check where everyone can see the details.
In contrast, Zcash offers "shielded transactions,” so you are able to prove you have the money and that you sent it, without actually showing the details. The zk-SNARK technology is used to encrypt the information so the network can say "Yes, this is valid," but nobody else can see the sender, the receiver, or the amount. Still, if users want, they can also make their transactions public, just like Bitcoin.
Hashing algorithms
While Bitcoin uses the SHA-256 hashing algorithm for its Proof of Work (PoW) consensus mechanism, Zcash uses an algorithm called Equihash. This difference means that hardware and software designed for mining Bitcoin are incompatible with Zcash. Also, Zcash uses larger block sizes and different hashing times, aiming for a higher network hash rate.
How to Mine Zcash (ZEC)
Like Bitcoin, Zcash uses a PoW consensus mechanism. ZEC miners have to compete to solve cryptographic problems to produce new blocks and earn block rewards.
While it’s technically possible to mine Zcash coins using standard computers (with operating systems like Linux, Mac, or Docker), the network difficulty has increased significantly since its launch. So, mining ZEC with a personal computer is virtually impossible and rarely profitable.
To mine Zcash effectively, it is recommended to use:
ASIC miners: Application-Specific Integrated Circuits are hardware systems designed specifically for cryptocurrency mining.
Mining pools: By joining a mining pool, miners can combine their computing power to increase efficiency and the likelihood of earning rewards, which are shared proportionally among the pool members.
Who Runs Zcash?
Zcash was originally developed by the Electric Coin Company (ECC). In a move toward decentralization, the ECC transferred the trademark and licenses to the Zcash Foundation. By 2024, the ECC announced its intent to step back further, handing over governance decisions entirely to the Foundation.
However, Zcash’s privacy features also make it more concerning to governments and regulators. This has led to debates about the future adoption of ZEC and other privacy coins in a regulated global economy.
Grayscale Zcash ETF Application
In late 2025, Grayscale, a digital asset manager, submitted an application for a Zcash exchange-traded fund (ETF). If approved, the ETF would allow traditional investors to buy shares representing ZEC through their standard brokerage accounts, without needing to manage crypto wallets or private keys.
Closing Thoughts
Zcash is a crypto project focused on blockchain privacy that uses zk-SNARK technology. Its privacy technology allows people to keep their money transfers confidential without losing the ability to verify transactions.
Further Reading
What Is Bitcoin and How Does It Work?
zk-SNARKs and zk-STARKs Explained
Hard Forks and Soft Forks Explained
Disclaimer: This content is presented to you on an “as is” basis for general information and educational purposes only, without representation or warranty of any kind. It should not be construed as financial, legal or other professional advice, nor is it intended to recommend the purchase of any specific product or service. You should seek your own advice from appropriate professional advisors. Products mentioned in this article may not be available in your region. Where the article is contributed by a third party contributor, please note that those views expressed belong to the third party contributor, and do not necessarily reflect those of Binance Academy. Please read our full disclaimer for further details. Digital asset prices can be volatile. The value of your investment may go down or up and you may not get back the amount invested. You are solely responsible for your investment decisions and Binance Academy is not liable for any losses you may incur. This material should not be construed as financial, legal or other professional advice. For more information, see our Terms of Use and Risk Warning.
Recién estoy aprendiendo del mundo gamer web3 y @Yield Guild Games YieldGuildGames me llamó la atención. Su YGG Play Launchpad ya está activo y deja ver nuevos juegos, hacer misiones y ganar acceso a tokens de proyectos nuevos. Para los que empezamos, es una forma fácil de entrar al mundo onchain. #YGGPlay $YGG
#injective $INJ En Perú mucha gente recién está aprendiendo del mundo cripto, y yo también voy paso a paso. Pero algo que me sorprendió es cómo @Injective está construyendo un ecosistema rápido y barato para que cualquiera pueda crear y lanzar aplicaciones sin complicarse. La red está creciendo fuerte gracias a su enfoque en la interoperabilidad y herramientas como CreatorPad, que abren la puerta a más proyectos reales. Vale la pena seguir de cerca lo que hacen.
📌Click The Link buyP2PZCoin✅ Our live stream on Binance every day at 1:00 GMT. The P2PZ team is closest to the community and streams daily on Binance to boost trust, growth, and reach our goal of $0.30 as a first step. P2PZ $P2PZ #P2PZ
📌Click The Link buyP2PZCoin✅ Our live stream on Binance every day at 1:00 GMT. The P2PZ team is closest to the community and streams daily on Binance to boost trust, growth, and reach our goal of $0.30 as a first step. P2PZ $P2PZ #P2PZ
📌Click The Link buyP2PZCoin✅ Our live stream on Binance every day at 1:00 GMT. The P2PZ team is closest to the community and streams daily on Binance to boost trust, growth, and reach our goal of $0.30 as a first step. P2PZ $P2PZ #P2PZ
📌Click The Link buyP2PZCoin✅ Our live stream on Binance every day at 1:00 GMT. The P2PZ team is closest to the community and streams daily on Binance to boost trust, growth, and reach our goal of $0.30 as a first step. P2PZ $P2PZ #P2PZ
Introducing Nexpace (NXPC): Trade NXPC to Grab a Share of the 300,000 NXPC Prize Pool!
This is a general announcement and marketing communication. Products and services referred to here may not be available in your region. Fellow Binancians, Binance Spot is launching two promotions for the NXPC Trading Challenge, where eligible users will have a chance to share a combined total prize pool of 300,000 NXPC in token vouchers! Promotion Period: 2025-05-15 17:00 (UTC) to 2025-05-22 17:00 (UTC) Trade Now Promotion A: Deposit & Trade on Binance Spot to Share the 100,000 NXPC Prize Pool Eligibility: All verified Spot users, subjected to the product being available in users’ regions. The first 25,000 eligible users who complete each task below will get to share 100,000 NXPC in token vouchers on a first-come, first-served basis, capped at 4 NXPC per user. Register for the Promotion by clicking the [Join Now] button on the landing page.Deposit a cumulative amount of at least 100 USDC equivalent of fresh funds* via P2P, card, fiat, and/or crypto deposit to get 2 NXPC, limited to the first 25,000 users.Trade a cumulative amount of at least 100 USDC equivalent of NXPC on Binance Spot during the Promotion Period to get 2 NXPC, limited to the first 25,000 users. Promotion Rules: Transaction or gas fees will be excluded from the final deposit and/or trading volume calculation.Fresh funds* refers to funds that are newly introduced into Binance via P2P, card, fiat, and/or crypto deposit. Funds that are transferred from another Binance account will not be counted.Token vouchers will be distributed to eligible users within 48 hours after task completion, and will expire within 14 days after distribution. Users will be able to login and redeem their token voucher rewards via Profile > Rewards Hub. Promotion B: Join the Trading Volume Tournament to Share Up to 200,000 NXPC in Rewards Eligibility: All verified regular and VIP 1 to 6 users, subject to the product being available in users’ regions.Liquidity providers in the Binance Spot Liquidity Provider Program are not eligible to participate. Promotion Rules: Token voucher rewards will be distributed to eligible users by 2025-06-13, and will expire within 14 days after distribution. Users will be able to login and redeem their token voucher rewards via Profile > Rewards Hub. Dynamic Prize Pool: The final prize pool will be determined by the total number of eligible participants who: Register for the Promotion by clicking the [Join Now] button on the landing page.Trade a cumulative amount of at least 200 USDC equivalent on NXPC spot trading pairs in the Trading Tournament during the Promotion Period. Note: Trading volume of all USD stablecoin trading pairs with zero trading fees, as well as any other trading pairs with zero trading fees, will be excluded from the final trading volume calculation. The Leaderboard will be updated on a 24-hour basis. Number of Eligible ParticipantsTotal Prize Pool (in NXPC Token Vouchers)1 - 9,99950,00010,000 - 24,99975,00025,000 - 49,999100,00050,000 - 99,999150,000100,000 - 199,999175,000≥ 200,000200,000 Reward Structure: The final prize pool will be distributed as follows: Eligible Users’ RankingsReward (%) per Eligible User from the Unlocked Prize Pool1st Place6%2nd Place5%3rd Place4%4th Place3%5th Place2%6th - 20th PlacesAn equal split of 20%21st - 50th PlacesAn equal split of 15%51st - 10,000th PlacesAn equal split of 45% Guides & Related Materials: How to Spot Trade (App / Web) Terms & Conditions: Only verified users who complete the tasks by the end of the Promotion Period may receive rewards.Promotions A and B are available to eligible users enabled for Binance Spot Trading, and may be restricted in certain jurisdictions or regions, or to certain users, due to legal and regulatory requirements.Reward Distribution:Promotion A: Token vouchers will be distributed to eligible users within 48 hours after task completion.Promotion B: All token voucher rewards will be distributed to eligible users by 2025-06-13.Users will be able to login and redeem their token voucher rewards via Profile > Rewards Hub. All token voucher rewards will expire within 14 days after distribution. Eligible users should claim their vouchers before the expiration date, and no replacement reward will be provided. Learn how to redeem a Binance voucher.Please note that the actual value of rewards received by a user is subject to change due to market fluctuation.Reward vouchers are subject to additional terms and conditions.Rewards are not negotiable nor transferable.Vouchers are distributed on a first-come, first-served basis. Once the available rewards have been allocated, no further rewards will be provided.Additional terms and conditions for prize promotions apply and can be accessed here.Binance reserves the right to disqualify any participants who tamper with Binance program code, or interfere with the operation of Binance program code with other software.Binance reserves the right to disqualify and revoke rewards for participants who engage in dishonest or abusive activities during the activity. This includes bulk-account registrations to farm additional bonuses and any other activity in connection with unlawful, fraudulent, or harmful purposes.Binance reserves the right to disqualify any participants who, in its reasonable opinion, are acting fraudulently or not in accordance with any applicable terms and conditions. All calculations and determinations in respect of any promotion will be undertaken by Binance in its sole discretion.Binance reserves the right at any time in its sole and absolute discretion to determine and/or amend or vary these terms and conditions without prior notice, including but not limited to canceling, extending, terminating, or suspending these activities, the eligibility terms and criteria, the selection and number of reward recipients, and the timing of any act to be done, and all participants shall be bound by these amendments.There may be discrepancies between this original content in English and any translated versions. Please refer to the original English version for the most accurate information, in case any discrepancies arise. Thank you for your support! Binance Team 2025-05-15 Disclaimers: USDC is an e-money token issued by Circle Internet Financial Europe SAS (https://www.circle.com/). USDC’s whitepaper is available here. You may contact Circle using the following contact information: +33(1)59000130 and EEA-Customer-Support@circle.com. Holders of USDC have a legal claim against Circle SAS as the EU issuer of USDC. These holders are entitled to request redemption of their USDC from Circle SAS. Such redemption will be made at any time and at par value.
Party Box🎀🎈🧧🎊🎉🧨 My 30k followers Done Today. my140 days strugle Done today. my Dream Come Trure i am so happy. share happiness take good have good. The ability or inability of BTC to hold key support levels — for example, if it slips under $BTC {future}(BTCUSDT) 84'100–84'300 ), bearish pressure could accelerate.
Overall market risk sentiment and macroeconomic developments (interest-rates, global growth outlook, inflation data, etc.), since BTC seems particularly sensitive to broader economic signals at the moment.
Institutional flows / investor demand for BTC. If institutions pull back or outflows increase (especially from big holders), that could deepen the sell-off. iQ⭐Always shine.✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨
#apro $AT Últimamente veo que @APRO Oracle está llamando bastante la atención por cómo maneja la información en blockchain. Me gusta la idea de que $AT pueda volverse útil para proyectos que necesitan datos rápidos y seguros. No soy experto, pero siento que puede crecer fuerte si sigue este ritmo.
CreatorPad is the one-stop monetization platform where Binance Square creators can find live campaigns, complete simple tasks, and earn token rewards for high-quality content creation. Enhance your CreatorPad experience with the brand-new My Rewards Page! Find detailed breakdowns of all* the campaigns you’ve participated in, organised by: Project nameReward typeEarned amount This means more transparency and faster access to your CreatorPad rewards than ever before. Whether you’re aiming to climb rankings and earn more or just want a clear view of your rewards, the My Rewards page keeps you fully informed. Plus, proudly showcase your earnings to the community with designed sharing cards. Simply generate your personalized sharing card and share your hard-earned rewards on Binance Square and across your favorite social media channels.
Join CreatorPad now and start earning rewards today! *Note: Only campaign rewards from 10 November 2025 will be displayed.