As reported by Deep Tide TechFlow on November 12, 2026, a Grayscale The Stack analysis by research head Zach Pandl and associate researcher Charlie Perkins found that Zcash’s monthly active developer count had roughly doubled over the preceding two years. The open-source figures were current through November 2, 2026. The report contrasted that growth with a decline in the broader crypto developer population from its peak.
Experience and development funding
About 70% of Zcash’s active developers had more than a year of crypto development experience, compared with an industry average of 58%, according to the Grayscale analysis. It cited experienced contributors’ work on zero-knowledge proofs, post-quantum cryptography, privacy-wallet usability and underlying security. Developer activity is a measure of ecosystem work, not a price signal.
The article also described Zcash’s block-reward funding mechanism, citing a Crypto.news account: 80% of rewards go to miners, 8% to a community grants fund for public infrastructure, and 12% to a holder-directed retrospective funding program for completed protocol improvements.
Protocol and fund developments
Zcash launched on October 28, 2016, and subsequently introduced the Sprout and Sapling shielded pools. The source reported that its July 2026 Ironwood upgrade brought formally verified supply protections and post-quantum recovery notes to mainnet.
The source also reported that Grayscale’s Zcash Trust listed on NYSE Arca on August 25, 2026, as ZCSH, describing it as the first US spot Zcash ETF and stating a 2.50% fee. Under its Zcash Invest initiative, Grayscale said it would direct up to 100% of ZCSH management fees in the first year to the Zcash Foundation, Shielded Labs and Project Tachyon. Neither developer growth nor this funding commitment establishes a market-price outcome.
Source: techflowpost.com (originally published 2026-11-12 10:12 UTC+8)
