đš Zcash (ZEC) experienced a major governance shock in January 2026. The entire development team from the Electric Coin Company (ECC) â the main group responsible for building and maintaining the Zcash protocol â resigned after a serious conflict with the Bootstrap Foundation, which oversees the projectâs non-profit governance structure
This internal dispute quickly shook market confidence đŹ, triggering a sharp sell-off that pushed ZEC down by more than 10% in just 24 hours
đ What actually happened?
Since the early days of Zcash, ECC had been the backbone of its core development. However, disagreements with the Bootstrap Foundation over governance decisions and the long-term direction of the protocol eventually reached a breaking point.
As a result, the entire ECC development team stepped down simultaneously, raising major concerns about who will lead Zcashâs technical development moving forward đ§âđ»â ïž.
The market interpreted this as a potential âleadership vacuumâ, even though Zcash still has other contributors and a separate foundation active within the ecosystem.
đ Market reaction and price impact
Following the announcement, ZEC fell over 10% in a single day, with headlines highlighting governance risks and uncertainty around the projectâs continuity.
This decline came shortly after a very strong performance in 2025, when ZEC surged more than 800% đ, driven by wallet upgrades, increased interest in privacy, and the growing narrative around zero-knowledge (ZK) technology
Despite the shock, some analysts argue that ZEC may still be in a medium-term consolidation phase, noting that prices had previously ranged around the $500â$550 zone before the news
đ”ïžââïž The bigger picture: privacy under pressure
Zcash was already facing challenges as a privacy-focused coin. In 2024, the market saw a record number of privacy token delistings â including ZEC â across centralized exchanges due to rising regulatory pressure đïž
Still, the outlook isnât entirely negative. #zec #zcash
