# Zcash

> Zcash: Shielded-pool L1. Technology: zero-knowledge proofs.

Part of the Soda Labs Privacy Hub, a neutral directory of the on-chain privacy
landscape: https://www.sodalabs.xyz/privacy-hub

## Key facts

- Entry type: Privacy project
- Category: Shielded-pool L1
- Technology: Zero-knowledge proofs (ZK)
- Website: https://z.cash
- Tags: ZK, payments, L1
- Canonical page: https://www.sodalabs.xyz/privacy-hub/zcash

## Overview

Zcash invented shielded payments at scale and handed the rest of the field its foundations. zk-SNARK shielded transactions have been in production since 2016, the Sapling upgrade made them practical on ordinary hardware, and Halo 2 removed the trusted setup and is now used well beyond Zcash itself. It has run its security work in the open too, disclosing counterfeiting vulnerabilities in 2018 and again in June 2026 rather than quietly patching them, and the June 2026 disclosure moved the price by a third in a day. A January 2026 governance dispute saw the core company's staff depart, and shielded usage remains a minority of supply.

## About Zero-knowledge proofs

One party proves a statement about hidden data is true without revealing the data the statement is about. Compared side by side with the other approaches at https://www.sodalabs.xyz/taxonomy.

## Sources

- [Protocol specification](https://zips.z.cash/protocol/protocol.pdf)
- [Reference implementation](https://github.com/zcash/zcash)
- [2026 disclosure](https://decrypt.co/370105/zec-crashes-38-as-zcash-discloses-critical-counterfeiting-vulnerability)
- [January 2026 governance change](https://bravenewcoin.com/insights/entire-zcash-development-team-quits-electric-coin-company-after-governance-dispute)

## Related entries

- [Aleo](https://www.sodalabs.xyz/privacy-hub/aleo): Privacy L1
- [Mina](https://www.sodalabs.xyz/privacy-hub/mina): Succinct blockchain
- [Aztec](https://www.sodalabs.xyz/privacy-hub/aztec): Privacy L2
- [Hinkal](https://www.sodalabs.xyz/privacy-hub/hinkal): Private DeFi layer
- [Miden](https://www.sodalabs.xyz/privacy-hub/miden): Client-side proving chain (upcoming)
- [Namada](https://www.sodalabs.xyz/privacy-hub/namada): Multi-asset shielded L1