Digital currencies are popular today. They allow cryptographic transfer of coins in electronic form. In other words, cryptocurrency is a special payment system that has its own rate and is equated to real money. Zcash takes a special place in the rating of currencies.

About the Zcash project

Zcash cryptocurrency is a digital platform that is distinguished by its privacy in transactions. To do this, the developers used a special zk-SNARK protocol. He creates a wallet with two keys. This system was immediately liked by miners who were attracted by mining with the help of equipment.

Zcash features

The virtual currency has a number of features that migrated from Bitcoin. At the same time, the developers have added some algorithms that distinguish it from other virtual currencies. For example:

21 million coins make up the total emission of tokens, which became possible thanks to mining.
At the initial stage, there was no ICO. The creators released a finished product, rather than looking for funds. The system is supported by mining.
During financial transactions, the zk-SNARK algorithm is used, which is characterized by zero information disclosure. This mechanism allows you to protect the blockchain from fraudsters.
The Zcash crypto also has a high level of privacy, which sets it apart from the Monero or Dash project.
Here it is possible to mine ZEC tokens using processors, video cards and other devices.
Consequently, the developers, led by Zuko Wilcox, advocate complete privacy of transactions. They also pay special attention to the protection of financial transactions and the system as a whole.

The platform also offers cryptocurrency mining using ASIC devices, processors and video cards. This method is the most profitable when buying special equipment. Nvidia models are perfect for crypto mining. Today there are such features of mining tokens:

PoW protocol is used;
the consensus protocol is subject to change;
a new block appears once every 2.5 minutes;
the miner is obliged to give 10% of the mined cryptocurrency;
blockchains are not protected from ASIC mining.
In addition, you need to use special software for mining, which may cause problems. But two system updates have been released recently. Experts also recommend using EBWF CUDA Zcash miner or Claymore Zcash / BTG Miner.

How Zcash is created

In 2014, work began on the creation of a cryptocurrency. Although the first data on the platform appeared in January 2016, the platform was officially launched in October 2016. At this time, the creator of the Zcash cryptocurrency, Zuko Wilcox, decided to create a digital system whose transactions would not be disclosed. He developed a new coin using the original Bitcoin code. At the same time, the integration of the Zerocash protocol was carried out. The technical background was prepared back in 2013 by the staff of the Department of Applied Cryptography at Johns Hopkins University.

Also, leading experts from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Tel Aviv joined in the creation, who prescribed a special protocol. We must pay tribute to the founder of the project, Zuko Wilcox, who did not really like the "openness" of transactions. He modified the source code of a Bitcoin based cryptocurrency.

The launch of this system took place during Bitcoins all-time high. And the cost of the crypt has increased significantly in just a year. The developers greeted the beginning of 2017 with a mark of $ 40, and already in 2018 - 876 US dollars. However, over time, the rate fell to $ 130. But today this virtual currency remains attractive to investors.

Is Zcash endless

The Zcash transaction is secured by the Sapling update. It speeds up the process of conducting financial transactions. This update has several advantages:

Increases up to ten times the transaction speed. But, it all depends on the features of the translation.
Reduces the system requirements for transaction security.
Transfers after the implementation of Sapling do not require downloaded and synchronized blockchains.
As a result, a platform was created that does not control the funds transferred. It only provides lightweight blockchain use with improved privacy.

Also, the developers are confident that the Alchemy project will make it possible to optimize transactions using the Ethereum platform. This system has the following functional features:

Each user can forward a transaction from the Zikesh blockchain by executing a smart contract. It is published in Ethereum by the seller himself.
The amount required for the exchange is placed on a special deposit. In this case, the terms of the contract do not change in any way.
Also, the buyer creates a transaction at a specific address on the Ethereum platform. In turn, the smart contract carefully checks the ZEC amount at the current exchange rate. Then a financial operation is carried out.
The creators claim that this system will not be implemented soon. A whole team has been working on its creation and implementation for several years. And it is not yet known when this project will be completed.

During transactions, developers recommend using large cryptocurrency exchanges or electronic systems. Some of the best online wallets are:

Ledger Nano S is a system whose software uses FIDO Universal Second Factor Authentication code encryption. This coding ensures complete security of financial transactions.
CoinPayments is a handy Zikesh wallet that takes only 0.5% commission on cross-currency transactions. That being said, it works great with 70 digital currencies. BitGo is responsible for security and high speed. Moreover, you can find versions of this program for mobile devices.
Jaxx Wallet is one of the multi-currency wallets that has proven itself to be an excellent blockchain project. This is a convenient and secure server, which has only one drawback - the low speed of confirmation of transfers.
At the same time, you can store cryptocurrency on such exchanges: Kraken.com, Poloniex.com, Cex.io, Mercatox.com, Bittrex.com, Hitbtc.com, etc. But there are other currency storages that are listed on the official project site.

By the way, private transactions and user addresses can be disclosed by the system at will, within the framework of current legislation. It can also happen due to a special audit.

Strengths of Zcash

The modern rate of the Zcash cryptocurrency is about $ 29, which indicates a certain popularity of the platform in the market. Experts say that investing in Zikesh is possible only for the long term. And there are considerable risks when investing in this virtual currency. Although some experts claim that cryptocurrency generates its blocks 4 times faster than digital gold.

This will help her become more attractive for mining. Moreover, confidential transactions are in great demand. So, in one day Zikesh conducts financial transactions for about 30% of its own capitalization. If, for example, compare with Bitcoin, then its share does not exceed 4%.

Lets talk a little about the cryptocurrency roadmap, which was updated by the developers in June 2018. It clearly demonstrates the authors plans for the next few years. What tasks are spelled out in this card?

It is planned to create a user guide. It will be built into mobile and software wallets to store tokens. Why do you need such a guide? The developers want to provide complete information about exchanges and electronic exchangers:

Increasing the level of privacy. The project team wants to move privacy from an option to the basic Zcash software. You wont be able to implement such an update right away. It is planned to do this within 2 years.
Creation of new research protocols. The developers intend not only to improve the scale of the network, but also to eliminate problems with decentralization. There are also plans to improve the update adaptation codes.
Further promotion of the platform using marketing tools. Experts are sure that they dont devote much time and effort to an advertising campaign.
One-stop system maintenance. Part of the received tokens will go to support the functioning of the platform. This will include adapting the system, eliminating vulnerabilities, and protecting against a 51% attack.
A special place in the perspective plan is given to the process of decentralization. The project team will consult directly with users about ASIC mining. Although now the authors are not going to closely deal with this topic. Perhaps they will leave it as an item in the next updates to the roadmap.
Thus, the specialists have a lot of work. They not only want to improve some elements of the cryptocurrency operation, but also radically change the privacy policy when conducting transactions.

Zcash in TOP currencies

Experts say that in 2019, the average cryptocurrency trading rate is about $ 200 million. This demand is associated with the reliability of the system and the closed nature of financial transactions. Zikesh is sometimes referred to as "digital gold". It is very actively bought on various exchanges, including Coinbase, Binance, Kraken and Genmini. Today, the cryptocurrency is worth about $ 29 with a capitalization of 231 million, which places it in 34th place in the ranking in terms of capitalization.

The technical features are aimed at improving the project. Among them, the aforementioned zk-SNARK, Overwinter and Sapling updates, and the Alchemy exchange platform stand out. Features description:

Zero knowledge privacy technology. During transactions, information about the participants in the transfer or the amount of money is not saved. A special algorithm for combating fraudsters was thought out. This principle implies scrutiny by the “observer” of the financial transactions of the “auditee”. If the latter has a special key, then Zcash transactions are made. In this case, the "observer" does not see the data of the "checked". As a result, a fraudster will not be able to bypass the system without such a key.
The Overwinter update is a hard fork of the Zikesh system that was announced in the summer of 2018. Such an update was carried out after the miners finished block 347500. Why is this update needed? The blockchain platform has certain disadvantages that it inherited from Bitcoin. Namely, a huge block size and a very limited network scale. Overwinter aims to fully optimize the system, preparing the blockchain for the Sapling update. Thus, with the help of an update, the cryptocurrency functions more easily.
The Sapling update is another hard fork launched in the fall of 2018. His work affects the confidentiality of the system, the speed of transactions and the level of complexity of the blockchain. The application of these updates is intended to introduce new mechanisms for controlling the amount of money. The update also enables lightweight nodes to protect financial transfers.
The Alchemy project was created for Zcash and Ethereum exchange operations. Here the ZEC tokens become the ETH currency unit. Today this project continues to be developed by leading experts. It is not yet known when its implementation will be completed.
Consequently, new designs and updates continue to develop successfully on the platform. New ways of monetizing tokens are being introduced, and algorithms are being created for the security system.