CoinDesk
Zcash activated its NU7 upgrade on Friday at block 3,543,405, reducing the target interval between blocks from 75 seconds to 25. The change aims to speed up private payment confirmations, though actual block times were still adjusting and availability depends on each service's requirements.
Why it matters
Faster blocks can shorten the wait for merchants and exchanges that accept Zcash. A service requiring three confirmations could see its expected wait fall from nearly four minutes to about 75 seconds, although each service sets its own rules.
NU7 also limits private transaction activity per block, reducing the worst-case daily data wallets must download to scan for payments from 271 megabytes to 169. Combined with more frequent blocks, the upgrade specification estimates capacity for simple private payments could more than double, from about three per second to over six.
Market impact
The upgrade redirects 60% of transaction fees to a reserve that will begin feeding future mining rewards around February 2031; miners receive the remaining 40%. The mechanism preserves Zcash's 21 million coin supply cap.
NU7 also retires Sprout, Zcash's original privacy pool, leaving about 12,224 ZEC unspendable. Co-founder Sean Bowe has outlined a possible recovery mechanism, but none had been approved as of Friday.
Frequently asked questions
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How quickly could a Zcash payment receive three confirmations after NU7?
A service requiring three confirmations could see its expected wait fall from nearly four minutes to about 75 seconds. Each service sets its own confirmation requirements.
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How does NU7 reduce the work required by Zcash wallets?
NU7 limits private transaction activity per block, reducing the worst-case daily data wallets must download to scan for payments from 271 megabytes to 169.
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What is NU7's estimated capacity for simple private payments?
The upgrade specification estimates capacity could more than double, from about three simple private payments per second to over six.
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How does NU7 change the allocation of Zcash transaction fees?
Miners receive 40% of transaction fees, while 60% goes to a reserve that will begin feeding future mining rewards around February 2031.
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What happened to ZEC held in the Sprout privacy pool?
NU7 retired Sprout, leaving about 12,224 ZEC unspendable. Co-founder Sean Bowe has outlined a possible recovery mechanism, but none had been approved as of Friday.
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