Quick Answer: Zcash NU7 activated at mainnet block 3,543,405, according to on-chain block records and a network-upgrade tracker checked around 06:27 UTC on November 6. It changed the target block interval from 75 seconds to 25 seconds, introduced a fee reserve, and rejected version 4 transactions, affecting the legacy Sprout pool. These protocol changes do not predict ZEC’s price.
What changes for ordinary Zcash transfers?
The clearest user-facing change is the shorter target interval between blocks. Zcash Foundation’s Zebra 7.0.0 release says NU7 reduces that target from 75 seconds to 25 seconds. A shorter target is not a promise of exactly 25-second confirmations: actual block times vary, and a wallet may require more than one confirmation. The Foundation says the daily ZEC issuance target remains unchanged because rewards and associated schedules are adjusted with the faster blocks.
What is the fee reserve?
The Foundation describes a Network Sustainability Mechanism under which 60% of each block’s transaction fees enter a reserve, while miners keep 40%. The reserve is intended for later reissuance under specified rules, rather than an immediate change to the 21 million ZEC cap. Its release notes say the later reissuance starts at height 8,939,664. This is a protocol design detail, not evidence that token demand or market price must rise.
Who needs to pay attention to Sprout and software compatibility?
NU7 rejects transaction version 4. The Foundation says Sprout transfers depend on that format, so funds left in the legacy Sprout pool become unspendable under the new rules. That is materially different from saying all shielded ZEC stops working: version 5 and version 6 transactions remain valid. Operators running full nodes, indexers, wallets, or exchange infrastructure should check compatible software and the chain tip. The Zebra release warns that older nodes will not follow the upgraded chain.
What should ZEC traders monitor?
Check that the service you use has resumed normal deposits and withdrawals after activation. Then separate network behavior from market behavior: a 25-second target can improve confirmation cadence, while ZEC price still depends on liquidity, positioning, broader risk appetite, and adoption. Do not infer a 10% rally from the upgrade specification alone; that claim requires a dated price series.
This opens the Phemex ZEC/USDT spot market, where eligible users can inspect current bids, asks and order options. Check regional access, deposit/withdrawal status, spread and fees before placing an order. A protocol upgrade and a price move can occur together without one proving the other caused it.
How can you verify that the upgrade happened?
The decisive marker is block height, not a calendar headline. The Zcash Foundation fixed NU7 activation at mainnet height 3,543,405. A block explorer's record for that block and a network-upgrade tracker showed the height had been reached at the November 6, approximately 06:27 UTC check. A reader checking later should use a current explorer or a fully synced node, then confirm that the chain has continued to build on the activation block.
This distinguishes three different timestamps that are often collapsed into one story: the planned date, the timestamp recorded in the activation block, and the time a particular wallet or exchange completed its own upgrade. Reaching the consensus height establishes the network rule change; it does not prove that every service restored deposits or withdrawals at the same moment.
Will a 25-second target make every payment three times faster?
No. It shortens the target average interval between blocks from 75 seconds to 25 seconds. Individual blocks can arrive earlier or later. A recipient may wait for several confirmations, and a service can apply its own confirmation policy after a network upgrade. Wallet syncing, mempool conditions and exchange processing also affect the user's end-to-end experience.
The Foundation says reward amounts and schedules were adjusted so that faster blocks do not triple daily ZEC issuance. Readers should distinguish more blocks per day from more coins issued per day. The change increases the frequency of block opportunities under the target, while the per-block reward is reduced accordingly. For users, the most practical question is whether their wallet and receiving service support the active consensus rules.
Does the fee reserve change ZEC supply immediately?
The fees directed into the reserve are temporarily unavailable for ordinary spending, but that is not the same as permanently burning them. The Foundation says reserved fees are scheduled for later reissuance starting at mainnet height 8,939,664. Analysts who call the mechanism “burning” or calculate a new hard cap from it should explain how their definition differs from the protocol's temporary reserve and later release.
The mechanism is also not a price model. Its market effect would depend on actual transaction fees, usage over time and how traders value future issuance. A one-day ZEC move cannot isolate those effects from broader crypto-market volatility or speculative positioning.
What would support a market-impact claim?
A careful post-upgrade analysis would compare ZEC's price and volume across a dated window, inspect the broader crypto market over the same hours, and check whether exchange trading or deposit restrictions affected liquidity. It would then distinguish what changed on-chain from what traders anticipated before the activation block. Price can move ahead of a known upgrade and reverse after it; a same-day rally or decline is not proof that any single protocol feature caused it. If a publication quotes a percentage move, it should give the venue, pair, start time, end time and data source. This draft does not have that complete series, so it makes no numerical price-performance claim.
FAQ
Has NU7 activated on mainnet?
Yes. The specified activation height is 3,543,405, and the activation block was recorded by the time of the November 6, 06:27 UTC check. Confirm current chain and service status before acting on an old article.
Does NU7 create more ZEC per day?
The Zcash Foundation says its reward adjustments preserve the existing daily issuance target and 21 million supply cap.
Is every shielded Zcash balance affected by the Sprout change?
No. The version 4 restriction affects the legacy Sprout transaction format. The upgrade does not mean that all shielded ZEC is frozen; wallets and services should check the pool and transaction version they use.
Should deposits or withdrawals work immediately after activation?
Not necessarily. An exchange or wallet may pause a service while upgrading software or checking chain stability. Verify the specific provider's live status before sending funds.
