Today's Cryptocurrency News (January 8) | XRP ETF first time outflow of $41 million; Zcash core team collectively departs

This article summarizes cryptocurrency news on January 8, 2026, focusing on the latest Bitcoin updates, Ethereum upgrades, Dogecoin trends, real-time crypto prices, and price forecasts. Major Web3 events today include:

1. Ethereum’s Largest Corporate Whale Strikes Again: BitMine Invests $105 Million to Bottom ETH, Holds $915 Million Cash Ready

As one of the largest known Ethereum holders, BitMine Immersion Technologies has increased its ETH holdings again at the start of 2026, drawing significant market attention. Although some analysts expect Ethereum’s price may remain under short-term pressure, BitMine’s latest move shows strong confidence in ETH’s medium- and long-term value.

According to blockchain data platform Arkham, in its first public transaction of the new year, BitMine spent approximately $105 million to buy ETH. This also signals the company’s renewed ETH accumulation plan in 2026. Data shows BitMine currently holds about 4.07 million ETH, with a market value of around $12.6 billion at current prices, accounting for 3.36% of total ETH supply, making it a leading enterprise-level ETH holder.

In addition to its massive ETH reserves, BitMine’s financial strength is notable. The company disclosed it still holds about $915 million in cash, which the market interprets as vital “ammunition” for further ETH accumulation. According to StrategicEthReserve, BitMine’s long-term goal is to increase its ETH holdings to 5% of the total network supply.

On-chain data also shows that BitMine has recently accelerated its ETH staking pace. Lookonchain’s tracking indicates the company has staked over $2.87 billion worth of ETH, with about 128,000 tokens added just in recent days. This suggests BitMine is betting on price appreciation and actively participating in Ethereum’s long-term yield structure.

Tom Lee, Chairman of BitMine and co-founder and managing partner of Fundstrat Global Advisors, stated that this $105 million investment is not a short-term gamble. In an internal report, he noted that although ETH prices might see a significant correction in the first half of 2026, even testing around $1,800, it would present an “attractive long-term allocation opportunity.”

From a broader market perspective, the behavior of institutions and whales is gradually converging. Data from Nansen shows that in the past week, whales increased their ETH holdings by about $11.2 million across 38 wallets, and new wallets bought up to $1.16 billion. Many analysts believe that after the 2025 market “stress test,” institutional capital is accelerating its return to core blockchain assets, with Ethereum remaining one of the most important allocations.

2. US SEC Delays Decision on Increasing IBIT Option Position Limit, New Deadline February 24

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has designated a longer period to decide on a rule change proposal submitted by Nasdaq ISE.

The proposal aims to increase the position and exercise limits for iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) options from the current 250,000 contracts to 1,000,000 contracts. The SEC has extended the decision deadline to February 24, 2026, to allow sufficient time to evaluate the market impact of significantly relaxing these limits.

3. Bitcoin Bulls Ignore Ray Dalio’s Warning: Fiat Currency Continues to Devalue, Gold Outperforms US Stocks, Capital Flows Accelerate Out of the US

Amid high bullish sentiment for Bitcoin, Bridgewater founder Ray Dalio issued a major macro warning. He pointed out that the market is severely underestimating the ongoing “fiat devaluation,” which is not AI or US stock innovation. In this context, gold and non-US stocks have clearly outperformed US equities, and capital flows are undergoing structural shifts.

Dalio emphasized that the key investment theme for 2025–2026 is the systemic decline in major fiat currencies’ purchasing power, distorting investors’ perception of real asset returns. He noted that last year, gold measured in USD returned 65%, while the S&P 500’s USD return was only 18%, a 47 percentage point difference. When priced in gold, the S&P 500 actually declined about 28%.

From a macro asset allocation perspective, Dalio believes the long-term competitiveness of US stocks relative to gold and foreign equities is waning. This is due to long-term fiscal and monetary stimulus side effects, overvaluation of assets, and shifts in global capital allocation structures. As investors gradually reduce their concentration in US assets, capital is flowing more rapidly into other markets.

Data shows that non-US equities outperformed US markets significantly over the past year. European stocks outperformed US stocks by about 23 percentage points, Chinese stocks by about 21 points, UK stocks by 19 points, and Japanese stocks by around 10 points. This gap reflects the re-pricing of risk and return by global capital.

Dalio also warns that currency devaluation creates an “illusion,” where asset prices rise nominally but purchasing power declines. This means that returns measured solely in fiat currency may greatly overstate real gains. Bridgewater believes that stocks, bonds, and cash in non-US assets are performing better on a risk-adjusted basis than US assets.

In this macro context, Bitcoin supporters continue to emphasize anti-inflation and anti-fiat narratives, while Dalio’s warning provides macro-logic support for gold, non-US assets, and diversified allocations. When fiat devaluation becomes the main theme, the core of asset allocation shifts from “how much it rises” to “how much purchasing power is preserved.”

4. Vitalik Buterin: Ethereum Can’t Keep Up in Speed—Why Scaling Is the True Fortress of ETH

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin recently articulated a core view in a new blog post: Ethereum cannot and should not rely solely on “faster speed” to win. He believes that physical laws and the fundamental requirements of decentralization impose natural latency limits on blockchain consensus mechanisms. The sustainable scaling path for ETH is bandwidth expansion, not endlessly compressing block times.

Buterin defines the Ethereum mainnet as the “world’s heartbeat,” not a high-frequency trading engine. He points out that through technologies like PeerDAS, zero-knowledge proofs (ZKP), and zkEVM, Ethereum has found a way to achieve order-of-magnitude scaling while maintaining decentralization. Since the Fusaka upgrade in December 2025, the number of new addresses on Ethereum has increased by over 110%, demonstrating the effectiveness of the scaling approach.

In contrast, reducing latency faces stricter constraints. The speed of light, global node distribution, hardware limitations of home-based validation nodes, and the need for censorship resistance and anonymity all restrict further compression of block times. Buterin believes that even with network optimizations and fewer validators per slot, block times can only be reduced to 2–4 seconds; further reduction would encounter insurmountable physical and economic bottlenecks.

Regarding AI applications, Buterin offers a clear perspective: high-speed AI systems require city- or building-scale local infrastructure and cannot rely on the global main chain for instant interactions. This underscores the importance of Layer 2 solutions: Ethereum’s mainnet handles global trusted settlement, while rollup ecosystems support high-speed, localized, application-intensive scenarios.

In another article, Buterin compares Ethereum to foundational infrastructure like Linux or BitTorrent: not aiming for the ultimate user experience but becoming a reliable underlying system that users and institutions “silently depend on.” This positioning is gaining institutional recognition, with JPMorgan, Deutsche Bank, and others developing tokenized products based on Ethereum.

Overall, Buterin’s latest statements clarify the boundaries of “Ethereum speed race”: Ethereum’s core strength is not millisecond latency but enabling global-scale, trustless collaboration under decentralization—its long-term value.

5. India Tightens Crypto Regulations? Tax Authorities Highlight Risks of Offshore Exchanges and DeFi

In the context of unclear regulatory frameworks, India’s tax authorities have issued warnings about crypto trading risks again. According to The Times of India, the Indian Income Tax Department (ITD), under the Central Direct Taxation Board, explicitly stated at the latest parliamentary finance committee meeting that crypto activities are increasing tax enforcement difficulties, and associated risks should not be underestimated.

The meeting was held on Wednesday, involving financial intelligence units (FIU), tax authorities, and the CBDT, discussing the report “Study on Virtual Digital Assets (VDA) and Future Development.” The ITD emphasized that the widespread use of offshore exchanges, private wallets, and DeFi tools makes identifying and tracking taxable income a systemic challenge.

Tax authorities pointed out that cryptocurrencies’ features—anonymity, borderless transfer, and near-instant value movement—allow users to bypass traditional regulated financial intermediaries. This is especially prominent in cross-border scenarios, where offshore virtual asset trading raises serious jurisdictional issues. ITD officials said that in cases involving multiple countries and regions, tracing transaction paths and confirming actual holders for tax purposes is “almost impossible.”

Despite progress in information sharing and inter-agency cooperation, the report notes that these efforts are insufficient for tax officials to effectively evaluate and reconstruct entire transaction chains, maintaining high enforcement difficulty. This highlights the long-standing “gray area” of India’s crypto regulation policy.

On the tax policy front, India currently levies a flat 30% tax on all crypto trading profits, with a 1% TDS (withholding tax) on each transfer, regardless of profit or loss. While India has gained substantial tax revenue from crypto trading and approved some international exchanges to re-enter the Indian market in 2025, the overall policy remains cautious.

Industry insiders believe this tax regime suppresses market vitality. CoinSwitch co-founder Ashish Singhal stated that losses from crypto trading cannot be deducted under the current framework, causing “friction rather than fairness.” As crypto adoption in India continues to grow, with FIU approving 49 exchanges in FY2024–2025, balancing regulation and taxation remains a key issue.

6. Cardano News: Grayscale Rebalances, ADA Share Rises to 18.55%, Becomes Third Largest Asset

Digital asset management giant Grayscale recently announced its latest quarterly rebalancing, with Cardano (ADA) now comprising 18.55% of the Grayscale Smart Contract Fund (GSC), making it the third-largest holding after Ethereum and Solana. This adjustment highlights ongoing institutional interest in Cardano’s smart contract ecosystem.

According to Grayscale, the rebalancing was completed after market close on January 6, 2026, following a routine index-based portfolio adjustment. The update involved the Smart Contract Fund, DeFi Fund, and Decentralized AI Fund, following the rules of the CoinDesk Smart Contract Index.

In the latest weight distribution, Solana and Ethereum occupy the top two positions at 29.55% and 29%, respectively, while ADA’s 18.55% allocation is significantly ahead of other major smart contract platforms. Sui, Avalanche, and Hedera have weights of 8.55%, 7.66%, and 6.69%, respectively, indicating ADA remains in the first tier of smart contract ecosystems.

Market consensus sees this allocation as a sign of long-term confidence in Cardano’s infrastructure. Despite its ecosystem activity and adoption lagging behind Ethereum and Solana, Cardano’s academic-driven, security- and scalability-focused approach makes it a key choice for diversification among institutions.

Launched in 2017 and introduced smart contracts via the Alonzo hard fork in 2021, ADA once reached a high of $3.10. Subsequent upgrades, including the Vasil hard fork, have continuously optimized smart contract performance and developer experience.

Notably, Grayscale included ADA in its Smart Contract Fund as early as March 2022, with an initial weight of 24.63%. Although the current share has decreased, ADA remains a significant component of multiple Grayscale products, including the Digital Large Cap ETF (GDLC). Grayscale is also advancing its Cardano spot ETF plans, further strengthening ADA’s institutional position.

7. Kalshi CEO Supports US Prediction Market Insider Trading Ban Bill

According to The Block, Kalshi CEO Tarek Mansour publicly supports Congressman Ritchie Torres’ proposed “2026 Fiscal Prediction Market Public Integrity Act,” which aims to prohibit government officials with non-public information from participating in prediction markets. Mansour emphasized that Kalshi has adopted regulatory standards consistent with NYSE and Nasdaq and has distanced itself from unregulated offshore platforms.

8. AI Coding Assistants as Hackers Entry Point? SlowMist Warns: Crypto Developers’ Assets Under “Unaware Intrusion”

Blockchain security firm SlowMist issued an urgent security warning, stating that mainstream AI coding tools have critical vulnerabilities that attackers can exploit through simple project operations, posing severe threats to crypto developers.

SlowMist threat intelligence team said that when developers open untrusted project directories in their IDEs, even routine actions like “opening folders” can trigger malicious commands on Windows or macOS systems, executing automatically without further interaction. Sensitive information like private keys, mnemonics, and API keys could be stolen without the developer’s awareness.

Research shows Cursor users are especially vulnerable. Security firm HiddenLayer disclosed this issue in its September “CopyPasta License Attack” report. Attackers embed hidden commands in Markdown comments in files like LICENSE.txt and README.md, tricking AI coding assistants to propagate malicious logic across codebases. These comments are invisible to human developers but are executed as “instructions” by AI tools, enabling backdoors, data theft, or system takeover.

HiddenLayer further states that besides Cursor, tools like Windsurf, Kiro, and Aider are also affected, with attacks capable of spreading with minimal interaction, amplifying systemic risk.

Meanwhile, state-sponsored attacks are escalating. Research indicates North Korean hackers have embedded malware directly into Ethereum and BNB smart contracts, creating blockchain-based decentralized command-and-control networks. Malicious code is distributed via read-only functions, evading traditional law enforcement and blocking measures. Groups like UNC5342 also target crypto developers through fake job postings, technical interviews, and NPM package deliveries.

Even more concerning, AI itself is becoming an amplifier of vulnerabilities. Research from Anthropic shows Claude Opus 4.5 and GPT-5 can find exploitable bugs in many real contracts, with attack costs decreasing. Chainabuse data shows AI-driven crypto scams increased by 456% in a year, with deepfakes and automated social engineering becoming mainstream.

Although on-chain security losses declined in December, vulnerabilities in AI coding tools and malicious blockchain infrastructure have made crypto developers high-value targets. For professionals relying on AI programming and managing digital assets, development environment security is an emerging systemic risk.

9. JPM Coin to Launch on Canton Network, JPMorgan Accelerates Multi-Chain Banking System

JPMorgan took another key step in blockchain finance. On January 7, 2026, the company announced plans to launch JPM Coin on Canton Network, expanding from its private system to an environment capable of interacting with public blockchains. This development, jointly disclosed by Digital Asset and Kinexys, will be phased in during 2026 and signals a significant move toward multi-chain financial infrastructure.

Originally launched in 2019, JPM Coin is a bank-backed token used mainly for institutional payments and settlements. Its daily transaction volume on Canton Network has reached billions of dollars. JPM Coin operates on JPMorgan’s Onyx platform, a Layer 1 blockchain emphasizing privacy and compliance, launched in 2023.

Previously, JPM Coin was confined to a closed, permissioned private blockchain environment with limited scope. The introduction of Canton Network means the token will gain interoperability, connecting different institutions and tokenized assets across various blockchains, enabling more efficient on-chain settlement for banks and asset managers.

Canton Network is an enterprise-oriented public blockchain with permissioned participation, allowing banks, asset managers, and other financial institutions to transact on shared ledgers while ensuring data privacy and compliance. This architecture aligns more closely with real-world financial scenarios, reducing cross-institution settlement times and operational costs.

Analysts see this move as not just a technical upgrade but a long-term strategic layout for multi-chain finance. By integrating with multi-chain infrastructure, banks are no longer limited to closed systems but are exploring how to bring the trillions of dollars in global deposits into blockchain networks, mainly in wholesale and permissioned contexts.

As JPM Coin advances on Canton Network, tokenized deposits and multi-chain banking solutions are moving from proof-of-concept to real deployment, accelerating the integration of traditional finance with blockchain technology.

10. First US State-Backed Stablecoin Launched! Wyoming Deploys FRNT on Solana, Digital Dollar Enters Practical Stage

Wyoming recently completed a landmark move by officially launching the first US state-issued stablecoin, Frontier Stable Token (FRNT), into the public crypto market. Seen as a significant milestone for US local governments exploring “digital dollar” forms, it could reshape how states interact with blockchain financial infrastructure.

According to Wyoming public media and the State Stablecoin Committee, FRNT was officially launched on January 7 and deployed on Solana. The token is now listed on a US crypto exchange for public trading. It also supports cross-chain transfer via Stargate, enabling movement across Ethereum, Arbitrum, Avalanche, Base, Optimism, Polygon, and Solana.

Unlike privately issued USD stablecoins, FRNT is the first fully state-backed and issued stablecoin in the US, developed over nearly a decade of legislative and technical efforts. Wyoming has invested about $6 million so far; future budgets are under legislative discussion.

The reserve assets are managed by Franklin Templeton and held in a Wyoming-chartered trust, including USD, cash equivalents, and short-term US Treasuries, with an over-collateralized structure. Unlike most stablecoins, the interest generated by FRNT’s reserves will directly support Wyoming public schools, creating a sustainable revenue stream for public finance, rather than returning profits to token holders.

Officially, FRNT does not offer staking rewards, mainly due to regulatory uncertainties around interest-bearing digital assets in the US, with future adjustments awaiting clearer federal guidance. Meanwhile, the state aims to reduce payment costs in public services using stablecoins. County Treasurer Joel Sheir noted that credit card fees cost local governments thousands of dollars annually, and on-chain settlement could significantly improve this.

Although initial trading volume was limited, no technical or liquidity issues were observed. Experts believe this project could serve as a reference for other states exploring blockchain finance and state-level stablecoins, with future development depending on actual usage, liquidity growth, and regulatory attitudes.

11. Record of 36 Consecutive Days of Inflows Ends! US Spot XRP ETF First Outflow of $41 Million

The US spot XRP ETF experienced a key turning point. Recent data shows that for the first time since its launch, the product saw a single-day net outflow, ending a 36-day streak of zero net outflows. According to SoSoValue, five US spot XRP ETFs combined had net outflows of about $40.8 million in one day, indicating a phase shift in capital sentiment.

Specifically, the main outflow came from 21Shares’ TOXR, which lost $47.25 million in a day; meanwhile, Canary, Bitwise, and Grayscale’s XRP ETFs saw combined small net inflows of about $2 million. Overall, the outflow scale remains limited, accounting for less than 3% of the total $1.25 billion net inflow since Canary’s XRPC listing in November 2024.

Crypto analyst Rachael Lucas from BTC Markets noted that the first net outflow of the US spot XRP ETF is symbolically significant but does not indicate a trend reversal. She explained that XRP’s price surged from $1.80 to $2.40 within a week, and combined with a market correction, some profits were taken. “On-chain data shows exchange reserves remain at historic lows, and trading volume stays high, indicating XRP’s medium-term fundamentals remain resilient.” Lucas added that if ETF funds flow back in, XRP could again test the $3 level.

It’s worth noting that this outflow is not unique to XRP ETFs. The US spot Bitcoin ETF saw a total outflow of $486 million on the same day, with Fidelity’s FBTC and BlackRock’s IBIT losing $247.6 million and $130 million, respectively. Over the past two days, total outflows from Bitcoin ETFs exceeded $700 million. Ethereum ETFs also faced pressure, with a single-day outflow of $98.5 million, including Grayscale’s ETHE losing $52 million, the first net outflow since 2026.

Presto Research analyst Min Jung pointed out that compared to stocks, crypto assets have recently underperformed, with some funds flowing back into traditional risk assets. This trend is reflected in price volatility and ETF capital flows. In the short term, changes in XRP ETF funds are more about market rebalancing than a negative outlook on its long-term prospects.

12. Shanghai Second Intermediate Court: Holding Coins and Trading Alone Usually Not Recognized as Illegal Business

On January 8, jointly organized by the Chinese Criminal Law Society, Shanghai Higher People’s Court, and Renmin University Law School, a criminal trial seminar focused on “Legal Uniformity in Virtual Currency Crime Cases,” with the following points:

In virtual currency money laundering crimes, the “subjective knowledge” determination should be a comprehensive judgment to prevent objective misattribution.

The types of acts and standards for completion of virtual currency money laundering crimes include: understanding the criminal nature of “concealing and disguising the source and nature of criminal proceeds and their gains”; that acts of concealing and disguising as stipulated by the crime constitute completion; and that strict crackdown on money laundering is necessary to safeguard national financial security.

Regarding illegal business recognition, if the behavior lacks characteristics of business operations and only involves personal holding and trading, it generally is not recognized as illegal business. However, if the individual knowingly assists others in illegal foreign exchange transactions or disguised transactions, and the circumstances are serious, it should be recognized as an accomplice to illegal business.

13. Vietnam Accelerates Crypto Regulation: Approves Pilot Cryptocurrency Exchanges Before Mid-January

Vietnam is clearly speeding up its institutional management of the crypto market. Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has instructed relevant authorities to approve the operation plans for pilot cryptocurrency exchanges before January 15, and to test and evaluate the digital asset market through a “regulatory sandbox.” This move signals Vietnam’s entry into practical crypto regulation.

According to Vietnam Investment Review, the timetable was officially announced at a nationwide online meeting on January 6. The meeting reviewed the financial sector’s development in 2025 and clarified key tasks for 2026. Among these, pilot cryptocurrency exchanges are listed as one of eight critical tasks, indicating digital assets have become an important part of Vietnam’s financial reform.

Officials pointed out that domestic and foreign investors’ interest in digital assets continues to rise. Since the government launched the crypto sandbox regulation framework in September 2025, market participation has increased significantly. Regulators hope that limited pilots will assess the impact of crypto trading on financial stability, capital flows, and investor protection.

In implementation, Vietnam will proceed cautiously. The Securities Committee’s crypto trading market management team said only up to five companies will be selected initially, with strict size limits. Entry requirements favor institutional operations, with applicants needing at least $400 million in registered capital.

Additionally, institutional investors must hold at least 65% of registered capital, with no less than 35% from two or more institutional shareholders such as banks, securities firms, funds, insurance companies, or tech firms. This aims to reduce retail risk, enhance market stability, and reflect Vietnam’s policy preference for “institution-led crypto markets.”

On the regulatory side, Vietnam is building cross-department cooperation. The Ministry of Finance will oversee exchange operations, the State Bank of Vietnam will monitor capital flows and AML risks, and the Public Security Ministry will combat high-tech and financial crimes. Participating institutions must meet strict financial and technical standards, including two years of profitability, audited clean financial statements, and IT security level 4 compliance.

Overall, Vietnam’s crypto exchange sandbox aims to explore a “regulate first, expand later” development path. In the increasingly competitive Southeast Asian crypto market, this timetable may serve as a regional regulatory model reference.

14. Solana Mobile Announces SKR Token Launch on January 21, 2026; Overview of Seeker Airdrop Rules and Token Economics

Solana Mobile officially confirms that its native token SKR will launch on January 21, 2026, within its smartphone ecosystem. The token is viewed as a core component of Solana Mobile’s mobile strategy, marking a significant upgrade in device governance, security, and developer incentives, and offering new airdrop opportunities for Seeker phone users and Solana ecosystem participants.

According to information disclosed by Solana Mobile on X, SKR will operate on its native crypto-enabled smartphone platform, covering app stores, device security, and on-chain identity systems. The launch aims to strengthen staking, governance, and collaboration within the ecosystem, enabling users to be more than just device users—they will participate directly in platform rules.

SKR introduces a “Guardian” staking model. Users can stake SKR with guardian nodes to verify device security, maintain platform standards, and participate in key decisions. This design combines economic incentives with hardware security, allowing stakers to earn rewards and influence the long-term stability of Solana Mobile’s ecosystem.

In governance, SKR stakers can vote on platform admission rules, fund flows, and ecosystem development directions, creating closer interests among users, developers, and the platform. Solana Mobile states this model promotes decentralized governance and sustainable application development.

The total supply of SKR is 10 billion tokens, with a linear inflation model. Initial inflation is 10%, decreasing by 25% annually, stabilizing at 2% in year six. About 30% of tokens will be airdropped, mainly to Seeker phone users, dApp users, developers, and early ecosystem participants. Another 25% is allocated for ecosystem growth, 10% for partners and liquidity.

Remaining tokens include 10% for the Solana community treasury, 15% for Solana Mobile, and 10% for Solana Labs. Solana Mobile CEO Emmett said the SKR airdrop rewards early supporters and allows community members to help shape governance and economic rules.

Notably, Seeker smartphones, Solana Mobile’s second-generation product launched last August, have improved hardware and on-chain integration compared to Saga. With SKR launching, Solana Mobile is accelerating building an integrated “device + token + governance” Web3 mobile ecosystem.

15. Zcash Today: Core Team “Collectively Leaves,” ECC Separates from Original Organization, Privacy Coin Road Shows Key Turning Point?

The core development team behind Zcash, Electric Coin Company (ECC), recently experienced major organizational changes. CEO Josh Swihart revealed that the entire team has left the non-profit organization Bootstrap, originally established to support Zcash, and plans to form a new company to continue advancing Zcash’s privacy coin vision. This news quickly attracted widespread attention in the crypto market and Zcash community.

Swihart stated that over the past few weeks, ECC team members realized that several key members of the Bootstrap board had diverged significantly from Zcash’s long-term mission in governance and values. He named Zaki Manian, Christina Garman, Alan Fairless, and Michelle Lai of ZCAM, and said that management decisions had directly affected the team’s ability to perform their duties. “Our employment relationships have changed, making it impossible to continue working with integrity and efficiency,” Swihart explained, adding that the collective departure was to protect the team’s years of accumulated成果.

He emphasized that although the team has legally and organizationally left the original structure, personnel, technical capabilities, and mission remain unchanged. “We are creating a new company, but it is still the same team, with the goal of building a truly unstoppable privacy coin,” Swihart said. This signals ECC’s attempt to maintain continuity of Zcash’s technical route amid governance conflicts.

Regarding the Zcash network itself, Swihart clarified that this team adjustment will not affect protocol operation. As an open-source, public blockchain project, Zcash is not owned by any single company or organization; it is maintained collectively by miners, validators, and users. Node operation, code submission, and forking mechanisms remain normal. This reassurance is seen as easing market panic.

However, the event has sparked different opinions within the community. Former ECC CEO Zooko Wilcox publicly defended the Bootstrap board on X, stating that several board members are long-term partners with high professional integrity. She reiterated that Zcash protocol’s security, privacy, and permissionless features will not change due to governance disputes, and users can continue to use Zcash normally.

Following the news, Zcash’s price experienced notable volatility. CoinGecko data shows ZEC dropped nearly 7% within 24 hours of the announcement, fluctuating between $452 and $497. Market sentiment remains cautious. Previously, Zcash surged above $700 in November last year amid a privacy coin rally and was praised by notable commentators like Arthur Hayes.

Overall, ECC’s departure from Bootstrap and the formation of a new company mark a significant turning point in Zcash’s governance and development path. In the short term, this uncertainty may continue to influence ZEC’s price; but in the long term, the privacy coin sector, Zcash’s technical foundation, and the future of its core team will remain key variables for investors and developers.