Zcash (ZEC) rose 11% to around $1,260 as developers set the mainnet block height for the NU7 upgrade, which will cut block times by two-thirds.
According to data reported by CoinDesk, ZEC stood out among major cryptocurrencies with its gains during Asian trading on Wednesday, October 21. The price move came alongside a concrete step toward the network’s next upgrade.
What will the Zcash upgrade change for users?
NU7 will reduce the time between blocks from 75 seconds to 25 seconds. This change will shorten the time users have to wait for payments to be confirmed on the network. The upgrade also provides for 60% of transaction fees to be directed into a reserve that will be paid out over time.
The activation height set by developers refers to the block number at which the network will switch to the new rules. NU7 has been running on the testnet since early October and will activate on mainnet when it reaches this block height.
ZEC’s rally outpaced Bitcoin and Ethereum
At the same time, Bitcoin was trading just above $82,700, up 1.3%, while Ethereum rose 2% to around $2,450. HYPE and DOGE gained more than 3%, while XRP rose about 3% to $1.33.
Gains in BNB and SOL remained between 1% and 2%, while TRX traded flat. Against this backdrop, ZEC’s double-digit gain pointed to a stronger price move than the broader market recovery.
Not investment advice.