From Decrypt · By Jose Antonio Lanz
In brief
About 12,224 ZEC, worth roughly $15 million to $16 million, remains in Zcash's original privacy pool, Sprout.
The NU7 upgrade will make those coins unspendable unless holders move them before activation.
The upgrade also promises transactions that confirm three times faster, while removing outdated technology from the network.
Zcash is preparing to shut down its oldest privacy technology, potentially leaving millions of dollars in cryptocurrency inaccessible to their owners—even if they still have the passwords and private keys needed to access their wallets.
Approximately 12,224 ZEC remain in Sprout, the cryptocurrency's original privacy pool, according to ZecStats data updated Thursday.
At recent market prices, those holdings represent roughly $15 million to $16 million that could become effectively frozen when the network activates its NU7 upgrade.
PredictCryptoEthereum next move: Pump to $3K or Dump to $1.5K?
58%42%$3K$1.5K$155.91K volumeOpen until resolutionOpen until resolution“NU7 (block 3,543,405) makes v4 transactions invalid, so what remains in Sprout is unspendable: frozen, not burned,” Zecstats says in its information card for Sprout.
The upgrade is scheduled for block 3,543,405, expected Thursday evening in the United States. The exact deadline depends on how quickly the blockchain processes new blocks, rather than a predetermined clock time.
Why is Zcash freezing millions in crypto?
Unlike Bitcoin, where transactions are generally visible to anyone examining the blockchain, Zcash allows users to conceal transaction amounts and the addresses involved. It accomplishes this through technology called zero-knowledge proofs, which can verify that a transaction is valid without revealing its private details.
Sprout introduced this technology when Zcash launched in 2016, but the team subsequently introduced improved privacy systems, including Sapling, Orchard, and Ironwood. Sprout has been closed to new deposits for years, but existing holders could still withdraw their funds.
NU7 changes that by eliminating version-4 transactions, the only format capable of moving coins out of Sprout. According to the network's technical specification, transactions using that format will become invalid after activation.
BitcoinBTC · USD$76,346−3.18%Oct 29Oct 31Nov 2Nov 4Nov 5$80.7k$79.1k$77.5k$76.0k24h HighHigh$80,88224h LowLow$75,573VolVol$1.9BMarket projectionsOdds by MyriadTodayAbove $76,000Above $76k60% chanceThis weekAbove $76,000Above $76k60% chance→Buy Bitcoin with USDCPowered by JupiterPrice data by CoinGeckoCoinGeckoMore Bitcoin news and projections →The decision addresses a problem familiar to anyone maintaining old software: supporting obsolete technology creates additional complexity and potential security vulnerabilities.