Zcash developers set January target for quantum-resistant payments after ‘bunker mode’ scare
Zcash developers aim to add quantum-resistant, hash-based signatures in January, with no mainnet activation date confirmed. The plan applies to public or transparent payments, which hold about seven in 10 ZEC, and a separate wallet tool is meant to keep balance checks from exposing which addresses are linked. The upgrade follows a recent “bunker mode” scare and has been framed as a move for the payment path rather than a full network change.
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What it means
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Zcash users who use the transparent payment pool are the ones most directly affected, because that pool holds 70.4% of issued supply and the planned change is aimed at that payment path. Wallet checks for those addresses are meant to stay from exposing which addresses are linked together, so the practical effect is on how those balances are handled and viewed. This is the part that would show up first to people using or watching public Zcash payments tomorrow morning.
In practice, the stated target is an added signature system for January, while no mainnet activation date has been set. That means the plan is for a specific payment layer, not a confirmed network-wide switch, and the wallet tool is meant to sit alongside balance checks rather than replace them. What changes is the security approach being prepared for that payment flow; what is not changed yet is the live network status.
Market reaction
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Has this happened before?
| When | What happened | Figure |
|---|---|---|
| 9 days ago | Zcash Shielded Pools Hold About 4.94 Million ZEC event | 1 actors in common · 2 news media |
| 12 days ago | Zcash activates NU7 network upgrade on testnet at block height 4,465,026 event | 1 actors in common · 9 news media |
| 15 days ago | THORChain launches Zcash pool, trading comes next event | 1 actors in common · 3 news media |
| 17 days ago | Zcash September Rally Precedes Gemini Infrastructure Move Ahead of Planned NU7 Upgrade event | 1 actors in common · 3 news media |
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