Zcash just activated its NU7 upgrade on the public testnet, setting up the chain’s biggest timing change in years. The signature move here is speed: Zcash’s blocks now target an interval of 25 seconds, down from 75. That means both wallets and exchanges can expect a first confirmation in about a third of the time, making on-chain transactions more responsive across the board.
But this isn’t simply a timing tweak. NU7 also changes how the protocol handles transaction fees and rewards. Under the upgrade, 60% of transaction fees are now set aside in a reserve, funding future mining payouts through Zcash’s Network Sustainability Mechanism. To make sure the faster block tempo doesn’t inflate supply, per-block rewards have been cut by two-thirds, so overall Zcash issuance still matches real time.
The current testnet phase is critical. Developers, miners, and infrastructure providers are working out any issues as they adapt to the new economics. With mainnet activation targeted for November 5, operators need to update their nodes and ensure system upgrades are in place. If that timeline holds, Zcash will head into November with one of its most user-visible changes since the Blossom upgrade.