Tyler Winklevoss, co-founder of cryptocurrency exchange Gemini, made headlines today by endorsing Zcash (ZEC) as one of the “most important and underrated cryptocurrency projects” on the market right now. His statement came via a post on X, emphasizing the crucial roles of privacy and decentralization in maintaining a “free and open society.”
“Zcash is one of the most important and underrated crypto projects in the world today. It brings privacy and decentralization to money, two essential elements for building a free and open society. That’s why I support Shielded Labs and their contributions to Zcash. Onward!” Tyler books.
Why Zcash Is The “Underrated” Cryptocurrency Project
This endorsement coincides with news from Shielded Labs, a Swiss-based independent organization dedicated to Zcash, which announced on August 8 It was announced Major organizational changes and development plans. Zooko Wilcox, known for his role in founding Zcash (ZEC) and Electric Coin Company (ECC), has joined Shielded Labs as Chief Product Officer and also takes a seat on its board of directors.
Wilcox’s immediate task is to oversee the development of Crosslink, a project that aims to transform Zcash from a proof-of-work (PoW) protocol to a hybrid proof-of-work/proof-of-stake (PoW/PoS) consensus protocol. His leadership is expected to be instrumental in Zcash’s strategic planning and fundraising efforts, with significant contributions already flowing in from figures like Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, Vitalik Buterin, the Anoma Foundation, and others.
Wilcox also published a blog post titled “Zcash is Winning,” detailing the philosophical and practical reasons why Zcash is a pivotal project in the crypto space, with an emphasis on privacy as a cornerstone of civil rights and economic freedom. He stressed the importance of developing Zcash technology to ensure it remains a viable and secure form of private money, against pressure from national governments.
“Zcash allows anyone — anywhere — to send, receive, and store private money without being pressured or coerced by others. Zcash puts control of your money in your hands alone,” Wilcox emphasized in his post.
Wilcox sees the shift to a hybrid PoW/PoS system as a necessary development to maintain currency distribution while relieving price pressures caused by continuous currency creation — a model that follows the original Bitcoin framework.
“It was time to upgrade Zcash to Proof-of-Stake (hybrid). The creation and distribution of ZEC using the Proof-of-Work mining algorithm was a necessary first step. (…) It ensured that ZEC would flow widely, and invisibly, into the hands of the people who valued it most and were most committed to its long-term mission,” Wilcox said.
Since Shielded Labs’ announcement, the price of Zcash has increased by over 35%. However, the price of ZEC is still down over 98% from its all-time high of $3,191 in October 2016. At the time of writing, ZEC is trading at $41.07.
Featured image from YouTube, chart from TradingView.com