What is Zcash (ZEC)
The development of Zcash (ZEC) was started in 2013 by Mathew Green a Johns Hopkins Profesor, along with his students.
The final development and release of Zcash was on Oct 28, 2016, by Electronic Coin Company (ECC). ECC was founded by an information security and cryptography expert, Zooko Wilcox-O'Hearn.
Zcash is a Crypto project that focuses on privacy and security. The majority of Crypto projects do not focus on privacy and are more open than anything. Every transaction you make is collected and shared on a Blockchain. Zcash is transparent just like other Crypto projects but they have made it so that if you want to shield certain transactions you can. This makes it so you can be anonymous if you would like to be.
How does Zcash work?
They say Zcash is the "HTTPS of Blockchains". Zcash was the first blockchain to implement zk-SNARKs. zk-SNARKs is zero-knowledge cryptography that allows its users the highest security available in the blockchain world.
"Zero-knowledge proofs are a scientific breakthrough in the field of cryptography: they allow you to prove that a statement is true without revealing the statement itself." - Source
Zcash is mined just like Bitcoin. New blocks are created roughly every 1 to 2 minutes. Every time a block is created more Zcash is created. Zcash uses the Equihash mining algorithm at the moment. Right now the reward for mining is 3.125. The next halving will be in Nov 2024 which will make the mining reward drop to 1.5625.
While miners receive 80% of a block reward, 20% is given to the "Zcash development fund": 8% to Zcash Open Major Grants, 7% to Electric Coin Co., and 5% to The Zcash Foundation. - Source
Zcash has the same amount of available Crypto as Bitcoin. This means that the amount of Zcash will never exceed 21 million just like Bitcoin.
The Pros of Zcash
Zcash is an amazing blockchain project and has multiple pros. I am going to go over some of the reasons why I think it is one of the best projects out there.
Fixed supply - This ensures that there will only be a certain amount of Zcash allowed in the world. This will keep the price rising as time goes on.
Mining - Zcash can be mined using a CPU or GPU.
Anonymity - There are a good amount of Blockchain projects that promise privacy but Zcash and Monero are at the top of the list when it comes to keeping your transactions private.
Fungible - Zcash is fungible. "Something fungible can be exchanged for something else of the same kind. For example, when we say "oil is a fungible commodity," we mean that when a purchaser is expecting a delivery of oil, any oil of the stipulated quantity and quality will usually do. Another example of something fungible is cash." - Source
The Cons of Zcash
Linux only - Zcash only officially supports Linux. Debian and Ubuntu
Not 100% private - Ordinarily, like all public blockchains, the transaction is recorded on the ledger. Fortunately, the amount of money sent and the addresses of the sender and receiver are not revealed to the public. Since there is an option to reveal such data for auditing and regulatory compliance, shielded transactions cannot be confirmed as absolutely private. This is because ZCash is fully compliant with Anti-Money Laundering/Combating the Financing of Terrorism measures set by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). Such adherence to centralized authority is what has seen numerous question marks raised about ZCash’s decentralized status. - Source
How to earn Zcash
The great thing about Zcash is that there are multiple different ways you can start earning Zcash. I am going to go over a couple of great ways I have found to earn Zcash (ZEC).
PipeFlare - PipeFlare is a faucet you can use every 24 hours. If you claim every day and do not miss any days the amount you earn will go up. There is a faucet for ZEC, MATIC, and 1FLR on the PipeFlare website. It is also a play-to-earn website with a bunch of games that allow you to earn either ZEC or 1FLR. 1FLR is PipeFlares Cryptocurrency that you can exchange or stake. If you would like to know more about PipeFlare check out my article PipeFlare - Play to Earn.
Remember to use Brave Browser when using PipeFlare and Global Hive. Not only will the sites give you a boost in your claim every day but you will also earn BAT by using the Browser and clicking a small ad every once in a while. I make an extra $5 a month just from clicking the ads.
Global Hive - Global Hive is another faucet you can claim once a day. The more days you claim the more you will earn each day. If you would like to know more about Global Hive then check out my article Earn ZEC with Global Hive.
Mining - This option is a little more difficult to utilize but it is possible if you have the time to learn and the extra hardware lying around. Check out the Zcash website for more information.
FaucetPay - FaucetPay is a microwallet that connects you to multiple different earning sites. It allows you to find ways to earn and hold ZEC, SOL, BNB, FEY, USDT, TRX, DGB, DASH, BCH, LTC, ETH, and BTC. FaucetPay is a great way to start earning and holding some of your favorite Crypto. When you are ready to withdraw the fees are extremely small and you will receive your Crypto that same day or in a matter of minutes for a higher transaction fee. I will be going over FaucetPay in my next article so stay tuned.
Conclusion
I am following a couple of projects and Zcash (ZEC) is up there with my top three. I think it is a strong project and at the moment it is number 55 in the top Crypto projects with a market cap of $708,411,171. I think this project is undervalued and as time goes on people are going to see how important projects like this one are.
This is just my personal opinion and is not financial advice. I think it is important to get other people's opinions on different projects that are available. Remember to always do your own research.
If you would like to find more ways to earn Crypto then I suggest checking out my article Earning Websites: Pros & Cons. You can also check out my website for more ways to earn, learn, and invest in Crypto.
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